The Sacred

The Sacred

A podcast about the things we hold sacred, and how to talk to people different from ourselves.

#79 Rachel Clarke

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Rachel is a doctor with a specialism in palliative care. Before going to medical school, she was a television journalist and documentary maker. She is the author of Sunday Times bestselling books ‘Your life in my hands’ and ‘Dear Life’, which is about her experiences working in a hospice. Her next book ‘Breathtaking’, about her experience on hospital COVID–19 wards, will be out next year.

In this episode she speaks about unsuccessful attempts to become a Christian, her deep faith in humanity, feeling like a fraud as a journalist, and why we should all have more conversations about death.

#78 Krithika Varagur

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Krithika is a columnist at the Wall Street Journal in New York and a former foreign correspondent based in Indonesia. She is a National Geographic Explorer and her first book ‘The Call: Inside the Global Saudi Religious Project’ was launched in April.

In this episode she speaks about growing up in a Hindu home, being humble and doing your research on covering religion, and why it’s vital that journalists take faith seriously.

#77 Helen Lewis

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Helen Lewis is a journalist, staff writer at The Atlantic and former deputy editor at The New Statesman. She is the author of ‘Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights’.

In this episode she speaks about feminism, her parents Catholicism, navigating online backlash, and why she looks forward to the day when British media is more representative.

#76 Jules Evans

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Jules is a writer, speaker and practical philosopher. He’s a research fellow at the Centre for the History of Emotions, Queen Mary University of London. He’s also the founder of the London Philosophy Club and co-founder of the first Stoicon, festival of Stoicism. He’s also the author of ‘Philosophy for Life and Other Dangerous Situations’, ‘The Art of Losing Control’, ‘Holiday from the Self’ and most recently ‘Breaking Open: finding a way through spiritual emergency.’
In this episode he talks about his boarding school hedonism, near-death experiences, foray into charismatic Christianity and why he thinks our society needs more space for ecstatic experiences.

#75 Sophia Smith Galer

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Sophia Smith Galer is currently working as the BBC World Services’ first ever visual journalist in faith and ethics. In this episode Sophia speaks about her experience as one of the first journalists in the UK to be experimenting with Tik Tok, why good religion reporting is so vital, and why journalism and opera singing have a surprising amount in common.

#74 Mark Vernon

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Mark is a psychotherapist who writes, lectures and broadcasts on philosophy with a focus on insights that illuminate our inner lives. He was formerly a priest in the Church of England and has written books on friendship, agnosticism, consciousness and love. His most recent book is ‘A Secret History of Christianity’ which is based upon the ideas of Owen Barfield.

In this episode he speaks about why he left the Church of England, his time as ‘nearly an atheist’, and how he found his way back to experiencing the presence of the divine.

#73 Myriam Francois

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Myriam Francois is a journalist, filmmaker and senior fellow at the Centre for Global Policy, an American think tank working on the intersection of American foreign policy and Muslim geopolitics. She has made radio and television documentaries for the BBC, Sky and others, and presented a range of programmes related to religion. She is currently running the website and podcast ‘We need to talk about whiteness’.

In this episode she speaks about the process which led to her embracing Islam after university, her experiences as a white woman in a headscarf, and why she will no longer take part in debates which she calls religious bear–baiting.

#72 Ed West

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Ed is a journalist. He’s worked on Nuts Magazine, The Catholic Herald and as a columnist for The Telegraph and The Spectator. He’s currently deputy editor at Unherd and the author of a recent book called ‘Small Men on the Wrong Side of History: The Decline, Fall and Unlikely Return of Conservatism’.

In this episode he speaks about his diverse career in journalism, his Catholic upbringing, why he thinks we are on a trajectory to greater progressivism and what he would like people to understand about conservatism.

#71 Willie Jennings

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Willie Jennings is a theologian and associate professor of systematic theology and Africana studies at Yale University. He’s an ordained Baptist minister and the author of ‘The Christian Imagination: Theology and the Origins of Race’, ‘Acts: A Commentary’ and many other titles. His next book is entitled ‘After Whiteness: An Education in Belonging’ and is out later this year.

In this episode he speaks about his love for the seasons, growing up with a racially divided church, why anger can be a force for good and why and how to understand the concept of whiteness.

#70 Adam Wagner

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Adam is a human rights barrister at Doughty Street Chambers, a visiting professor at Goldsmiths University, Chair of the human rights charity EachOther, and host of the Better Human Podcast.

In this episode he speaks about why he is nervous of the concept of the sacred, his Jewish religious practice, how human rights frameworks temper our worst selves, and why he is still a fan of Twitter.

About this podcast

The Sacred is a podcast about our deepest values, the stories that shape us and how we can build empathy and understanding between people who are very different.

Each episode features a conversation with someone who has a public voice, from academics to journalists, playwrights and politicians. We ask them where they have come from, what they are trying to do and what might help heal our very divided public conversations.

The Sacred is hosted by Elizabeth Oldfield, former director of Theos think tank.

For more information about the people and ideas behind the podcast, visit https://www.theosthinktank.co.uk/about/who-we-are or follow us on Twitter @theosthinktank, @sacred_podcast and @ESOldfield.

by Theos think tank

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