Holy Smoke

Apr 08 2025 180 ep. 23 mins 5.4k

Holy Smoke Podcast artwork

The most important and controversial topics in world religion, thoroughly dissected by a range of high profile guests. Presented by Damian Thompson.

Religion & Spirituality Society & Culture

Copy RSS

Subscribe on Podcast Addict

Was Simeon of Jerusalem the first Christian in recorded history?

Apr 08 2025 27 mins

In Luke's Gospel, an ancient inhabitant of Jerusalem named Simeon meets Mary and Joseph when they bring Jesus to be presented at the Temple on the 40th day after his birth. He has been promised that he will not die until he has seen Christ, and as he takes the baby into his arms he utters the words, 'Lord, now let your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes ha

The tin ear of Justin Welby

Apr 01 2025 28 mins

The former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, is back in the news following his interview this week with the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg. The interview – his first since he resigned last November – was clearly Welby's attempt to draw a line under the abuse scandal that cost him his job. The 2024 Makin report concluded that the Church of England missed many opportunities to in

A sick Pope and a paralysed Vatican: who is actually running the Catholic Church?

Mar 28 2025 11 mins

A greatly enfeebled Pope Francis is now living in enforced isolation in a suite at his Santa Marta residence that has been converted into hospital accommodation. He won't be resuming public duties for two months, we are told – and even his senior advisors have limited access to him. As a result, it's really not clear who is in charge of the Catholic Church. And, as Damian Thompso

Christianity, culture wars and J.D. Vance: a conversation with James Orr

Mar 11 2025 61 mins

James Orr was living the life of a young, high-flying lawyer when, after a few drinks at a New Year's Eve party, he asked for signs that God existed. The signs came; among other things, he narrowly avoided a fatal skiing accident. Now he is a passionate Christian and a conservative culture warrior who helped defeat an attempt to impose the tyranny of critical race theory on Cambrid

Conclave – what really happens when a Pope dies?

Feb 25 2025 53 mins

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 the novel by Robert Harris, it also has eight nominations at the upcoming 2025 Academy Awards. Full of intrigue, the film has viewers wondering how true to life the process depicted on

Holy War and Antichrist: The rise of extremist rhetoric inside the Russian Orthodox Church

Feb 20 2025 35 mins

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 approval of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. In response, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow broke off all relations with Constantinople, creating arguably the greatest schism in Orthodo

Why militant atheists don’t understand religion: a conversation with Alister McGrath

Feb 12 2025 35 mins

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 without even knowing what it is. Prof McGrath, emeritus Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University, has had a unique journey to religion. A former Marxis

Are Syrian Christians who speak the language of Jesus about to disappear after 2,000 years?

Jan 31 2025 25 mins

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 Assad, forges alliances with hardline Muslims including foreign jihadists – Uighurs from China, Uzbeks from Central Asia, Chechens from Russia, Afghans and Pakistanis. Mgr Michael

Could Trump 2.0. herald a new era of religious liberty in America?

Jan 24 2025 35 mins

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 freedoms in America. Andrea argues that the Biden administration waged an unprecedented assault on such freedoms during his term. What could happen over the next four years on issues like ge

Did Muslim leaders help conceal the grooming gangs scandal? A fierce exchange of views

Jan 17 2025 28 mins

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 the controversy surrounding the Muslim background of some of the accused in the crimes of Britain's 'grooming gangs'. Damian draws an analogy between the Catholic hierarchy's cover-up