Ep 14: "Who am I?" with Christopher Watkin

Episode 18: “Whatever happened to New Atheism?" (Season Finale)

Around the mid 2000s atheism became sexy. It was everywhere. Headlined by Richard Dawkins and the other ‘four horsemen’ of New Atheism; Christopher Hitchens, Sam Harris and Daniel Dennett. They -and many other public atheists- were dominating best seller lists, YouTube algorithms and making news with their witty and swashbuckling commentary. But it seems like those days have moved on pretty quick. We only really hear about Richard Dawkins now when he’s being cancelled, and atheism hasn’t really risen at all when you look at the numbers. So what happened to New Atheism, and what could be taking its place?

Well, for our final episode of season 1, we’re delighted to have Justin Brierley joining us from the UK. Thanks to his popular Unbelievable? Radio show which brought (and still brings) prominent Christians and sceptics together for dialogue, he was able to have a ringside seat to many of the proponents and arguments of New Atheism. His new book ‘The surprising rebirth of the belief in God’ covers the downfall of the movement along with the cultural shift that seems to be happening. You can also listen to the podcast docu-series with the same title, you won't regret it.

Other References:

• The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins
• Reason, Faith, and Revolution: Reflections on the God Debate by Terry Eagleton
• 'Dear Muslima' controversy
• Faith, Hope and Carnage by Nick Cave and Sean O'Hagan
• The Rest is History Podcast
• AC Grayling and Tom Holland Conversation on Unbelievable?
• The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity by Douglas Murray
• The Master and His Emissary: The Divided Brain and the Making of the Western World by Iain McGilchrist
• The Storytelling Animal: How Stories Make Us Human by Jonathan Gottschall
• Unbelievable: Why after ten years of talking with atheists I'm still a Christian by Justin Brierley
• Kant’s “What is Enlightenment?” Essay
• (Not referenced but super interesting and apt) Prominent Atheist becomes a Christian; 'Why I am now a Christian' by Ayaan Hirsi Ali for UnHerd (11/11/2023)

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contacting us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 17: “How do we find our voice?"

Deeper Questions is a show that seeks to explore a vast array of topics and experiences in the spirit of curiosity and listening. This exploration will sometimes include heavy and uncomfortable themes that may shake us up and affect us in important ways, but they may also change us for the better. For this episode we have a very special guest joining us - the one and only Grace Tame. We spend the episode zigging and zagging through some of her experiences and reflections on life. I find her voice refreshing and something that can help us find ours in the midst of adversity and trials. Very thankful for her honesty and openness here.

Since being announced Australian of the Year in January 2021, Grace has become a household name as a brave and passionate advocate for a number of important social causes, but especially for the systemic change to prevent child sexual abuse. The Grace Tame Foundation works with government, not-for-profits, legal experts and educators to improve protections in legislation and to inform and educate people in our communities about sexual abuse and survivor issues. She’s also written a memoir The Ninth Life of a Diamond Miner, which we discuss at length here.

*Warning: This episode contains references to the sexual abuse and assault of minors, trauma, and other graphic content which some listeners may find distressing. Resources are available below if you’d like to talk to someone.

Survivor Resources:

• 1800 RESPECT - 1800 737 732
• Bravehearts
• Grace Tame Foundation

Other References:

• Silver Bullet Podcast
• Grace's commissioned piece for John Cleese
• Georgia M. Winters & Elizabeth L. Jeglic (2016): Stages of Sexual Grooming:Recognizing Potentially Predatory Behaviors of Child Molesters, Deviant Behavior
• Review of ‘The Game’ on the Podcast “If Books Could Kill”
• Grace’s article on Crikey
• Spotlight movie (2015)

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contacting us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 16: "What does healthy masculinity look like?" with Al Stewart

The last 50-60 years have brought unprecedented change when it comes to understanding, and re-writing our understanding, of gender roles in society. Today’s episode is not so much going to look at all the aspects of gender we could cover, but we want to zero in on manhood and masculinity. Being a man has always brought a range of advantages and power dynamics that we’re coming to understand more and more, but there also challenges that we’d do well to try and dig into as well.

Today we have Al Stewart who has recently written a book on masculinity, called The Manual: Getting Masculinity Right. I’m privileged to call him a friend and someone that I’ve admired and worked alongside over my time with Third Space and City Bible Forum. He’s currently the director of the Fellowship of Independent Evangelical Churches, and has extensive experience in Christian ministry. We don’t tend to get pastors on this show much, but he’s learnt a lot about blokes over the last few decades, and has plenty of great insights.

Other References:

• Bridge Street Fellowship is the Sydney chapter of our National Men's Fellowship
• "Middle-aged men are among the loneliest in Australia. What could help to change that?" by Nick Baker and Isabelle Summerson for ABC Australia (13/7/23)
• Jordan Peterson’s ‘letter’ to the churches
• The New Manhood: Love, Freedom, Spirit and the New Masculinity by Steve Biddulph
• The Men We Need: God's Purpose for the Manly Man, the Avid Indoorsman, or Any Man Willing to Show Up by Brant Hansen
• The Toxic War on Masculinity: How Christianity Reconciles the Sexes by Nancy Pearcey
• "The growing need for ‘lazy time’ amongst Aussie men" by McCrindle Research (2016)
• Additional infographic by McCrindle
• "Modern Masculinity Is Broken. She Knows How to Fix It" by David Marchese for the New York Times (24/9/2023)
• "In praise of heroic masculinity" by Caitlin Flanagan for The Atlantic (30/8/23)

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contact us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 15: "Can trees save the world?"

When people think of climate change I imagine they think of the smog and smoke pouring into the atmosphere as we burn fossil fuels to power our cities, cars, and lifestyles. And you would be right. But perhaps an understated accelerant is the loss of vast forest ecosystems which are often destroyed for agriculture, housing development, and the forestry industry. Not only are trees a vital source of oxygen that ensures we can breathe the breath of life, but they are also one of our most powerful defences against climate change. The original carbon capture technology immaculately designed by the first agronomist.

Speaking of agronomists, today we have Tony Rinaudo joining us. Also known as 'The Forestmaker'. Tony works for World Vision and has been a force in the climate change story. He worked in Niger for a couple of decades helping farmers with work with nature to restore native forest land, and to grow enough food to support their local communities. His focus has been in Africa, but his work is going global, thanks to a strategy called ‘Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration’ which well get to. In 2018 he won the Right Livelihood Award (Alternate Nobel Prize) "for demonstrating on a large scale how drylands can be greened at minimal cost, improving the livelihoods of millions of people".

Other References:

• The Forest Maker (documentary) directed by Volker Schlöndorff
• The Forest Underground: Hope for a Planet in Crisis by Tony Rinaudo
• Richard Saint Barbe Baker
• ISCAST - the Institute for the Study of Christianity in an Age of Science and Technology
• I Want to Fix Ears: Inside the Cochlear Implant Story by Graham Milbourne Clark
• Permaculture: A Designer's Manual by Bill Mollison
• Call of the Reed Warbler: A New Agriculture, A New Earth by Charles Massy
• "Gardens of Eden: the Church Forests of Ethiopia – a photo essay" by Kieran Dodds in the Guardian (8th November 2021)

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contact us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 14: "Who am I?"

We know more about ourselves than ever before, we can get a DNA sample to 23 and me and discover extensive information about our biological family and our own physical characteristics. We can develop an online persona for a cluster of social media platforms and present ourselves any way we want. But how can we know who we really are?

Dr Christopher Watkin is an Associate Professor in French Studies at Monash University, where he holds an ARC Future Fellowship. Chris writes books and journal articles, teaches, makes YouTube videos and is the author of the recent Australian Christian Book of the Year Biblical Critical Theory: How the Bible’s Unfolding Story Makes Sense of Modern Life and Culture.

References:

• A Secular Age by Charles Taylor
• The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self by Carl Trueman
• Habits of the Heart: Individualism and Commitment in American Life by Robert Bellah
• The First and Second Treatises of Government by John Locke
• The Political Theory of Possessive Individualism: Hobbes to Locke by C. B. McPherson
• Saint Paul: The Foundation of Universalism by Alain Badiou
• Inventing the Individual: The Origins of Western Liberalism by Larry Siedentop
• Confessions by St Augustine
• Oneself as Another by Paul Ricoeur
• Psalm 139

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contact us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!


Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 13: "What's your favourite drink (and why is it single malt whisky)?"

Sometimes on Deeper Questions there’ll be niche, and then there’ll be next level niche like today. Digging into a topic that is ridiculously particular and concentrated where you might come in knowing absolutely nothing of what we’re talking about. Well if that’s you today then don’t worry! I think we manage to handle it in a way that caters to people with no prior knowledge, people that associate whisky with ‘that unnatural burning sensation in my throat and chest’ - as well as some juicy bits for those who have a decent top shelf when it comes to whisky.

Today we have Jane Overeem, the co-owner of Overeem distillery, as well as Bec Polmear, the co-founder at Waubs Harbour Distillery. Both distilleries have been recognised on the world stage with Overeem taking home awards from the World Whiskies awards in 2019, and a gold medal in 2023 for their Port Cask. Waubs Harbour are new to the scene and have been recognised almost immediately, winning a master medal and two gold medals at the World Whisky masters 2023.

Other References:

• "India's whisky consumption rises by 200pc in 10 years" by Sunil Badami for ABC (12th May 2023)
• "On the rocks: The untold story of the Nant Whisky scandal" by Josh Robertson for ABC (10th March 2019)
• "Whiskies from Van Diemen’s Land: Waubs Harbour vs Overeem vs Callington Mill's Dark Secret" by AW in Time and Tide (June 24th 2023)
• The World Atlas of Whisky by Dave Broom
• Tasmanian Whisky: The Devil's Share by Bernard Lloyd
• Drinks Adventures Podcast

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contact us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 12: “How can we help save a life?"

Suicide is one of those taboo topics that we push as far out of minds we possibly can. And for good reason. It’s utterly tragic when someone takes their own life. When their circumstances and emotional wellbeing reach such a point that they no longer feel they can go on. Where it feels so bleak, so hopeless, and a permanent escape is the only option. And so today we wanted to bring it front of mind, with a guest who is doing some incredible work in this space to help get us talking.

Mitch McPherson who is the founder of SPEAK UP! Stay ChatTY – a not-for-profit organisation working in the mental health space, promoting positive mental health and prevent suicide by normalising conversations about mental health and encouraging people to seek help when they need it. Mitch established the organisation in 2013 after his younger brother Ty died by suicide, and has been a champion in the mental health space ever since - sharing that it’s OK to not be OK, that we can find help, and that we can help each other out in tough times.

Other References:

• Beyond Blue
• Lifeline or call 13 11 14
• Get Frank Podcast
• Mindframe
• Global stats on suicide
• Suicide rates by country
• Suicide by Emile Durkheim
• St Augustine on Suicide - See City of God Book 1 sections 17-23
• Why Religious belief provides a real buffer against suicide risk by David H Rosmarin in Psyche (7th August 2023)

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything by contact us at deeperquestions@thirdspace.org.au - We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!


Support the show

If you’re a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience or make a contribution, you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 11: "What’s with our obsession with True Crime?"

In early 2023, Triton Digital‘s Australian Podcast Ranker showed that Casefile, an Australian True Crime podcast - had risen to number 1 in Australia, beating Hamish and Andy. Apart from Casefile, there are approximately 120 podcasts about true crime, just from Australian content creators. Since Serial, the popular spinoff from This American Life, in 2014, it seems our appetite for this kind of journalism meets narrative nonfiction is insatiable. What does it tell us about us as people and as a society?

Dr Michael A. Guerzoni is a criminologist at the School of Social Sciences in the College of Arts, Law and Education. Michael’s research examines organisational culture, deviance, and crime prevention, with a particular focus on the safeguarding of children within religious institutions. The results of his doctoral thesis was published as a book titled Child Protection in the Church: An Anglican Case Study (Routledge Studies in Crime and Society). He’s also the author of a number of scholarly journals and book chapters. Michael has done way too much reading on this subject and brings compassion as well as expertise to this episode.


Other References:

• Guerzoni, M. A. (2020). Vicarious trauma and emotional labour in researching child sexual abuse and child protection: A postdoctoral reflection. Methodological Innovations, 13(2). https://doi.org/10.1177/2059799120926342
• Macdonald, Lucy (2023, May 8). Groups of roaming juveniles “continually committing offences”, Tasmanian Police association says. ABC News. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-05-08/surge-in-youth-crime-repeat-offenders-tas-police-worried/102316044
• Boling, K. S., & Hull, K. (2018). ‘Undisclosed information—Serial is my favorite murder: Examining motivations in the true-crime podcast audience’. Journal of radio & audio media, 25(1), 92-108.
• Meade, A. (2022) ‘The Teacher’s Pet: hit podcast thrust Lynette Dawson’s 1982 disappearance into the spotlight’. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/aug/30/the-teachers-pet-hit-podcast-thrust-a-spotlight-on-lynette-dawsons-1982-disappearance.

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything! We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too!


Support the show

If you're a fan of the show and want to help us grow our audience/contribute towards production you can sign up to our Patreon page here.

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 10: “Are you spiritual but not religious?"

Every time the census rolls around there is intrigue, vigorous campaigning, non-stop commentary and at times feverish hysteria about the decline of institutional religion. And while Australia continues to become more and more secular, it doesn’t necessarily mean that everyone is becoming less spiritual. For this episode we’ll meander through a bunch of topics, disciplines, authors and ideas that we hope you’ll find as interesting as we did.

Natasha Moore is a Senior Research Fellow at The Centre for Public Christianity: a not-for-profit media company that offers a Christian perspective on contemporary life. She has a PhD in English Literature from the University of Cambridge and is the author of For the Love of God: How the Church is better and worse than you ever imagined as well as The Pleasures of Pessimism. She spoke recently in Hobart as part of the Henry Baldwin Lecture series, and our conversation interacts with the lecture.

Other References:

• We asked Australians if they believe in God or the supernatural. Here's what they said by Natasha Moore in ABC Religion & Ethics (4th April 2021)
• Eastergate by Natasha Moore on the CPX website (13th April 2021)
• Strange Rites: New Religions for a Godless World by Tara Isabella Burton
• For statistic regarding 49% of Australians not having spiritual conversations see “Aussies more open to spiritual conversations through Covid” by Eternity News April 1st 2021
• You Are You. We Live Here. This Is now. by Freddie de Boer on his personal Substack (28th March 2023)
• The Life We're Looking For: Reclaiming Relationship in a Technological World by Andy Crouch
• Nothing Bad Ever Happens Here by Heather Rose
• Unapologetic: Why, Despite Everything, Christianity Still Makes Surprising Emotional Sense by Francis Spufford
• Isaiah 55

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything! We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios

Episode 9: “Would Jesus identify as an Evangelical?"

Evangelicalism seems to have a massive PR problem. You probably see in the news the same thing that I do: high profile scandals, a loud voice in the culture wars, and behaviour that doesn’t line up with the historical Jesus. So I wanted to discuss the perception and the reality of Evangelicalism - both the label and the movement. As well as how it lines up with the central figure of Christianity; Christ, and his teachings.

Constantine Campbell is a Professor and Associate Research Director at the Sydney College of Divinity, and previously served as Professor of New Testament studies at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Chicago and Moore Theological College in Sydney. He specialises in ancient Greek language and completed his doctorate at Macquarie University 2007. Con is also the author of 16 books, with a focus on ancient Greek linguistics, New Testament interpretation, and the writings of St Paul. His latest book is Jesus vs Evangelicals.

Other References:

• Taking America back for God by Andrew Whitehead and Samuel Perry
• Faith and Belief in Australia Report (2017) by McCrindle Research. See pages 26 and 34 about Christians being known as ‘caring’
• Australia’s changing spiritual landscape Report (2021) by McCrindle Research. See page 11 for stat where 76% of Australians think churches make meaningful difference to their community.
• Jesus more popular than evangelicals: See “Openness to Jesus Isn’t the Problem—the Church Is” by Barna Research (May 2023).
• Matthew 23: A warning against hypocrisy from Jesus.
• PSA = Penal Substitutionary Atonement
• We discussed a significant posture shift that occurred due to ‘Constantine’. We were of course referring to Emperor Constantine from the early 5th century, and not Con Campbell!

Got questions?

You can shoot Aaron or Amy an email about anything! We'd love to hear your brutally honest or delightfully encouraging thoughts on the show and the topics that come up each week. There's a good chance we have stuff on our website at Third Space too.

Feel free to suggest potential guests or topics as well. No doubt there are heaps of important ideas and stories out there worth hearing!

Deeper Questions is produced by Production Farm Studios