Notes on episode 14: Live and in person, it's 'With All Due Respect!' At least, it was last night when Megan and Michael recorded their first live episode at the invitation of PEACEtalks , an initiative of Paddington Anglican Church in Sydney. And... how handy that the federal election was called for the day of our live podcast, all about ... the election! For arguments sake: where we take a debate, cut out the party politics and try to talk it out Megan kicked off with a quote from Franklin D R...
Apr 12, 2019•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 14
Hey guys! We're doing a live podcast in April in Sydney. You should definitely come along. More details here. For arguments sake: where we take a debate, cut out the party politics and try to talk it out Megan and Michael get straight into discussing child sexual abuse within the church in the wake of Cardinal George Pell's conviction and sentencing earlier this month on several counts of child sexual abuse while he was Archbishop of Melbourne in the 1990s. They consider whether there is somethi...
Mar 28, 2019•50 min•Ep. 13
Notes from Episode 12: Is it a sin to talk about sin? For arguments sake: where we take a debate, cut out the party politics and try to talk it out Megan and Michael dig into the giant topic that is: SIN. What is it? And what effect does it have on human beings? Christians have plenty of hang ups about using the word 'sin'. Megan says in some Christian tribes, it's not a popular word at all. Yet despite the wariness around the word, Megan says she likes it. "I find the word 'sin' is one where my...
Mar 14, 2019•46 min•Ep. 12
Notes from Episode 11: If you're happy and you know it ... For arguments sake: where we take a debate, cut out the party politics and try to talk it out Are we as Christians expected to be happy all the time and, if not, do we have a lack of faith? Michael posits that we measure things by 'happiness' but, says Megan, there are still different social narratives on how we think happiness is achieved and what kind of happiness is valuable. They discuss Paul Dolan's book Happy Ever After, which they...
Feb 28, 2019•41 min•Ep. 11
Happy Valentine's Day, listeners! "Give your loved one a book this Valentine's Day," suggests Michael Jensen in this episode dedicated to the love of books: The Good Book, other books and a book on good reading. For arguments sake: where we take a debate, cut out the party politics and try to talk it out How should we read the Bible today? Megan and Michael ponder how the Bible is different to any other book. What in the world does a "plain reading of the text" mean when we're talking about the ...
Feb 14, 2019•42 min•Ep. 10
In For Arguments Sake , Megan and Michael do us all a favour and explain what exactly is the culture war. With that out of the way, they try to put party politics aside and discuss examples of such warfare - and whether Christians should be trying to win these battles. Shockingly, Michael and Megan had starkly different reactions to that Gillette ad when they first saw it but they push through to explore the hot button topic of toxic masculinity. From here, it's head-long into the vexing issue o...
Jan 31, 2019•44 min•Ep. 9
In For Argument’s Sake , Megan and Michael tackle the upcoming visit to Australia by evangelist Franklin Graham (son of legendary preacher Billy). They focus upon the controversy surrounding Franklin Graham's visit and how he doesn't have the same ability to unite Christians as his father. With Franklin Graham's vocal support for President Trump stirring widespread debate, Megan explains she has other concerns about his relationship with the politics of power and sexuality. Both Michael and Mega...
Jan 17, 2019•44 min•Ep. 8
We revisit episode 7 of With All Due Respect : In For Argument's Sake, Megan and Michael tackle some holiday-themed sticky questions: Is Easter better than Christmas? Should we really be giving Christmas presents? Megan points to an essay by G.K. Chesterton on the theology of Christmas presents. Find out why the duo think material gifts can be quite an important tradition, with a theological basis. Michael suggests that Christmas is a display of God's abundance. It's also an ideal that can often...
Dec 20, 2018•43 min•Ep. 7
In For Argument's Sake , Megan and Michael delve into the depths of confusion about what happens after death. They note that most Christians - well, most people actually - are pretty fuzzy on this topic. It was politicians answering Greg Sheridan's questions on what happens when we die, for his book God is Good For You , that prompted Megan and Michael to explore this more. Both agree that our culture continues to have a "cartoon-like" understanding of heaven and hell, and they try to uncover wh...
Dec 06, 2018•42 min•Ep. 6
In For Argument's Sake , Michael and Megan talk about the "real blow up" that is the religious freedom debate circling around whether Christian schools should be able to discriminate in the hiring of staff and selection of students. Triggered by a bill from the Greens , there has been heated debate about a letter from 34 Anglican schools in Sydney, organised by the Anglican Archbishop Glenn Davies which supported the schools' right to uphold the Christian ethos of their school in their choice of...
Nov 22, 2018•44 min•Ep. 5
For Argument's Sake Michael wrote a response to an article by Stephen McAlpine , an evangelical pastor and blogger in Western Australia, on apologetics, which argued that the era of nice apologetics is over. What is apologetics? It's nothing to do with saying sorry but it's giving a defence of the Christian message in the public square. Michael and Megan discuss Stephen's contention that artful persuasion doesn't work because it's perceived as a mask for power. The Discomfort Zone Michael persua...
Nov 08, 2018•40 min•Ep. 4
In For Argument's Sake, Megan and Michael argue over the validity of a new statement delivered from the US called The Statement on Social Justice and the Gospel, which suggests social justice movements are leading people away from Jesus. It's a topic Megan is particularly passionate about: she's doing her doctoral research on it, in fact. The pair discuss the huge controversy over the statement, including amongst people you'd think would have agreed. So ... is social justice the gospel? And if i...
Oct 25, 2018•39 min•Ep. 3
Michael and Megan disagree about the role emotion plays in theology ( Michael edited a book on emotion, which you can find here ). They argue about whether emotions are a source of theology, why (and if) evangelicals place so much emphasis on reason over emotion and Megan asks if it might be to do with the traditional view that men are more rational and women are more emotional. If you weren't already uncomfortable, in the Discomfort Zone, Michael challenges Megan to read a section of John Calvi...
Oct 11, 2018•37 min•Ep. 2
Rev Dr Michael Jensen , rector at St Mark’s Anglican Darling Point , author , public commentator. Rev Megan Powell du Toit , ordained Baptist minister, Publishing Manager of the Australian College of Theology , editor of the journal Colloquium . Episode 1: The Drum , ABC, 30 August 2018 (Michael on) Global Neighbour Index , Baptist World Aid Australia No Room Domestic Violence Report , Baptist Care Australia Tonightly Scott Morrison song The Wife Drought, Annabel Crabb The Handmaid’s Tale TV ser...
Sep 26, 2018•33 min•Ep. 1
Look forward to new episodes every second Thursday.
Sep 25, 2018•29 sec
