Seen & Unseen Aloud

In this week's episode, we get a guided tour of some impactful exhibits as Robert Wright visits the UK's only Faith Museum, in Bishop Auckland, and hears how its funder hopes to inspire reflection on the divine; 60 years after its author’s death, The Screwtape Letters image of hell as an unscrupulous business is still relevant. Simon Horobin tells how C.S. Lewis came to author the influential bestseller; and dining in a different culture lets Belle Tindall contemplate struggle and belonging across the heartlands of the Middle East. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we consider the power of attention - the giving and receiving of it and its power for healing but also the complexities of fame; Justine Toh considers what Simone Weil's philosophy of attention has to say to western culture's attention battles; Jamie Mulvaney takes us to the National Portrait Gallery in London to look at Sir Paul McCartney's unseen portraits of the Beatles; James Cary speaks of the grief at the death of Matthew Perry and unexpected twists in the story of real life Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we hear Julie Canlis explaining the church's season of Ordinary Time and why it's so special; we continue to follow Ian Hamlin on his adventures as he takes us to some significant memorials of American and human history; Ryan Gilfeather asks questions about human dignity and worth in the context of the Israel/Hamas war Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Lydia Dugdale celebrates All Saints Day by remembering the lost of art dying well; George Pitcher observes that simple calls for peace are often against the grain of power, yet many still yearn for it, even when faced with complexities and impossibilities; Ian Hamlin talks about the merging of stories and their power to inspire and change the world, as he continues on the trail to find out more about his hero. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode Nick Brewer contemplates becoming a Dad and what he has learned from the love of his own father; Henna Cundill follows her nose on an emotional scent trail from childhood to adulthood and, as part of our How to Die Well series, Natalie Garrett talks about her experience of bereavement and what death has taught her about life Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Graham Tomlin talks about the need for courageous leadership as the only hope for the intractable war in the Middle East; on the 100th anniversary of Disney, Jared Stacy declares there's much more to Disney than a mouse and Tory Baucum comments on the modern-day love story of Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift being played out on a very public stage Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The line up for this week's episode sounds like the start of a joke.... but it's actually very thought-provoking. Roger Bretherton asks the age old question, "why are all Christians in movies crazy?"; Theodore Brun mourns the loss of the Sycamore Gap Tree and explores what it's demise can teach us; Belle Tindall takes us backstage to her conversation with Frank Skinner and the surprise that Christians are actually interesting. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Belle Tindall takes us behind the scenes in British politics with Rory Stewart's "tell all" published memoir; Robert Wright explores the powerful motivation of faith at work in food banks in the midst of the cost of living crisis; and Lauren Windle finds little charm in Snow White's Prince Charming as Disney celebrates its centenary. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we travel with Ian Hamlin through the challenges of starting a sabbatical and how difficult (and important) taking "time out" can be; Krish Kandiah gives us a review of Ken Loach's new film "The Old Oak" and what it tells us about the power of community; Stefani Ruper, in the last of her series Confessions of an Atheist Philosopher plots the course from distrust to trust and asks the important life question, "What are we waiting for?" Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we explore the human condition: James Ray seeks the Authentic Man in answer to the question of the Problem with Men; Henna Cundill takes a dive into the murky shallows of cancel culture and shame's historic role in guarding community boundaries; Belle Tindall goes to the Seven Psalms Exhibition to experience the songs and sketches of Paul Simon and Charlie Mackesy's collaboration and finds questions and answers from the duo we didn’t know we were missing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.