God Forbid

As the US election approaches, presidential candidate Donald Trump has been doubling down on the religious language - selling bibles, preaching retribution and styling himself as a persecuted saviour. Trump enjoys the support of the overwhelming majority of white evangelical voters, but will that be enough to return him to the White House? Guests: D Stephen Long, theologian, Cary M

Today, billions of people adhere to one of the “Big Five” major religions, but there are many more religions from history that have died out. Conquests, cultural change and conversions have all caused religions to shift, shrink and disappear. But when can we truly declare a religion “dead”? And could the religions of today die out in the distant future? Guests: Aslan Pahari

Jesus was famously a carpenter, and many religious texts associate carpentry with wisdom, humility, and devotion. So, is there something divine about working with wood? Woodwork is the most ancient of crafts. It can offer both solitude and companionship, teach us lessons about patience and failure, and connect us to place, people and stories. Guests: Phoebe Everill, furniture maker

The federal government is unwilling to progress promised religious discrimination reforms unless it secures bipartisan support from the Coalition. Can a compromise be reached, or is this debate likely to be shelved again? Guests: Chris Bedding, is Executive Officer of Faith Workers Alliance and a priest of the Anglican Church in Perth David Robertson, Presbyterian minister, directo

Why do we choose to endure hardship? Can sacrifices - sacred and secular - make us better human beings? Guests: Justine Toh, Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Public Christianity. Adis Duderija, Senior Lecturer in the Study of Islam and Society in the School of Humanities, Languages and Social Science at Griffith University. Brock Bastian, Professor at the Melbourne School

What is it like to grow up in a strict religious or cultural household - and what happens when you no longer agree with your parents’ worldview? Guests: David Newheiser, Senior Research Fellow, Religion and Theology, ACU, author of Hope in a Secular Age Laura McConnell Conti, grew up in a fundamentalist Christian group known as The Truth Professor Manjula Datta O’Connor, psychi

The modern welfare state emerged in Australia some 100 years ago, but it remains a subject of intense ideological, philosophical and even religious debate. Guests: Verity Archer, ​​lecturer in social work, community and human services at Federation University Eve Vincent, anthropologist at Macquarie University, author of Who Cares? Life on Welfare in Australia John Falzon, Seni

Evolving digital technologies have supercharged our anxieties around privacy and surveillance. These concerns may feel new, but they have always existed. Privacy is central to human dignity, intimacy and wellbeing - but in a world of ever-evolving technologies - is privacy in its death throes? Guests: Anita Allen, Professor of Law and Philosophy, University of Pennsylvania Hugh Bre

For as long as we have had language, we have told stories - and some of the oldest stories, are fairytales. What can they teach us about the world, and why do they still appeal? Guests: Marguerite Johnson, classicist, historian and Honorary Professor at the University of Queensland. Tom Wright, theatre writer and Artistic Associate at Belvoir Street Theatre in Sydney Michelle Smith

What would make religious spaces more accessible for people with disabilities? Transcript available at the ABC God Forbid website. Guests: Carly Findlay OAM, writer, speaker and activist Professor John Gilroy, ARC Research Fellow in Indigenous Disability and Community Development at the University of Sydney Dr Louise Gosbell, a disability theologian and Research Manager at the Aust