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Conclave – what really happens when a pope dies?
The film Conclave has picked up a host of awards across all the major ceremonies so far, including at the Screen Actors Guild, the Golden Globes, and winning Best Picture at the BAFTAs. Adapted from …
Published on 6 months ago
Holy War and Antichrist: The rise of extremist rhetoric inside the Russian Orthodox Church
The subject of Ukraine shattered the unity of Eastern Orthodoxy long before Russia’s full-scale invasion began. In 2018 the Ukrainian Orthodox Church declared independence from Moscow with the approv…
Published on 6 months, 1 week ago
Why militant atheists don’t understand religion: a conversation with Alister McGrath
In his new book Why We Believe: Finding Meaning in Uncertain Times, Prof Alister McGrath rejects the notion that belief is a relic of the past and takes aim at the ‘new atheists’ who attack religion …
Published on 6 months, 2 weeks ago
Are Syrian Christians who speak the language of Jesus about to disappear after 2,000 years?
There has been a Christian community in Syria since the first century AD. But it is shrinking fast and faces terrifying new threats as the country’s government, following the overthrow of President A…
Published on 6 months, 4 weeks ago
Could Trump 2.0. herald a new era of religious liberty in America?
Andrea Picciotti-Bayer, director of the US-based Conscience Project and a friend of Holy Smoke, joins Damian to talk about what the incoming second Trump administration could mean for religious freed…
Published on 7 months ago
Did Muslim leaders help conceal the grooming gangs scandal? A fierce exchange of views
Welcome to one of the most heated exchanges of views in the history of the Holy Smoke podcast. In this episode, Damian Thompson talks to the distinguished Islamic scholar Dr Musharraf Hussain about t…
Published on 7 months, 1 week ago
How abuse scandals shattered the Church of England but were hidden by the Vatican
In this end-of-year episode of Holy Smoke, Damian Thompson discusses the abuse scandals that have forced the current Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, to resign his post, his predecessor Lord C…
Published on 7 months, 4 weeks ago
Why was C.S. Lewis such a killjoy at Christmas? A discussion with Alister McGrath
Which 20th-century Scrooge had the following to say about the celebration of Christmas?
‘It gives on the whole much more pain than pleasure… Anyone can force you to give him a present by sending you …
Published on 8 months ago
Is the end of Christendom nigh? with A.N. Wilson
Thousands of Brits will be attending Christmas and carol services throughout December. Yet festive attendance masks the reality that church congregations just aren’t holding up. The most optimistic o…
Published on 8 months, 2 weeks ago
Defender of the Faith: how have the King’s religious beliefs changed?
As we approach the end of a uniquely painful year for the Royal Family, the King's trusted biographer, Robert Hardman, joins Damian Thompson to discuss the Monarch’s faith. As Robert recently reveale…
Published on 8 months, 3 weeks ago