Religion And Ethics Report - Separate Stories Podcast

What’s the point of church-affiliated schools that don’t teach the church’s values?

As world leaders gather in Edinburgh next month for the COP26 climate summit, we look at the threat to Pacific nations like Tuvalu, and the Christian case for helping your neighbour in the climate emergency.

In a rare rebuke, the leaders of South East Asian nations have shunned the military junta in Myanmar, telling its prime minister he isn’t welcome at next week’s ASEAN summit. Since the junta seized power in February, the UN estimates the Burmese army has killed more than 1100 civilians.

New South Wales could soon legalise euthanasia or voluntary assisted dying, after Independent MP Alex Greenwich introduced a bill this week. Religious leaders hold different views on the bill.

The COVID pandemic confined much of the world’s population to their homes and curbed all kinds of activity. But new Pew Research reveals that even before its onset, religiously motivated violence had been on the decline. Yet at the same time, government restrictions on religion were higher than ever.

One of the starkest images from Afghanistan in the 1990s was the Taliban’s destruction of the ancient Buddha statues. Now there are fears that the war in Ethiopia could wreak similar destruction on the ancient holy city of Lalibela, a World Heritage listed site.

Balbir Singh Sodhi almost became a forgotten victim of the 9/11 terrorist attacks twenty years ago. His story is a poignant one, yet he wasn’t among those who died in the Twin Towers or the Pentagon or Pennsylvania.

The historic Catholic Plenary is asking how the church can regain public trust after the sexual abuse scandal, bring lost Catholics back to the pews, and give more authority to woman and lay people. Join host Andrew West, ABC Religion Unit specialist Noel Debien and three leading Catholic women to analyse the summit so far.

Is it make or break time for the Catholic Church in Australia? A major summit, taking place in October, is called to consider the future of a church in crisis.

For the first time in over 80 years, leaders of the Australian Catholic Church and, more importantly, representatives of the churchgoers will hold a major summit to chart the future of the Australian church. Former royal commissioner into child sexual abuse Robert Fitzgerald, says the church needs to seize this chance to confront the secrecy and power that enabled the abuse.

Deputy president of Fair Work Australia Lyndall Dean has said compulsory vaccinations for workers would create ""medical apartheid" in the nation. Ms Dean was dissenting from a majority judgement that upheld the right of a nursing home to sack a worker who refused vaccination. So, can mandatory vaccinations for workers be introduced in an ethical way?

There are laws to protect human rights during war, but do they actually create wars without end? Yale law professor Samuel Moyn has written a new book on the subject.

The Taliban continues to impose a harsh religious agenda on Afghanistan, now refusing to allow teenage girls back to school, and urging women to stay in their homes. The militant group are now in charge of a sovereign state — but should the international community recognise the regime?

Has "workism" and obsession with achievement replaced religion? In a new book, Justine Toh challenges the market-driven idea of meritocracy, saying it has created a culture of smugness for the successful and a politics of humiliation for those left behind.

For a decade, immigration and refugee policy has ignited German politics, but predictions of a new refugee surge out of Afghanistan have not moved voters. There has, however, been an unusual focus on the religious connections of the Christian Democrat candidate.

Pubs, theatres and sporting events may demand patrons have COVID vaccination certificates before entering — but should the same rule apply to churches and places of worship? The Anglican and Catholic archbishops say they cannot turn away people because they are unvaccinated. Constitutional law expert Dr Joel Harrison explains.

Muslim Australian artist Abdul Abdullah was a teenager in Perth when 9/11 occurred. Abdul recalls the backlash and racism his community encountered in the wake of 9/11, and its role in shaping his identity today.

After the collapse of the World Trade Centre on 9/11, what fractures appeared across the Islamic world, especially between pro-western leaders and their people? How did the terrorist attack turbo-charge nationalism in Europe and the U.S., fuelling the idea of a "clash of civilisations"?

What was the world like on 10 September, 2001? What discontent had been simmering across parts of the Arab and Islamic worlds that fuelled the Al Qaeda plot?

Popular activist Nizar Banat died after he was severely beaten by Palestinian police in late June. But Palestinians are still on the streets — and they’re invoking the cause of a new Arab spring.