The Big Tent

‘Peace be with you all!’ Pope Leo’s first words to the world have resounded across continents — for all to hear. Fresh off the papal plane from Africa, CNN's Christopher Lamb speaks with Geraldine Doogue about what it means for the Church, and for the wider world, to have an American pope. A year into his papacy, what’s Leo like, up close? What kind of moral and diplomatic voice is he becoming on the world stage? And what happens when the pope’s words are read through the prism of politics? And a question for listeners: what would you like to hear more of in future episodes? Get in touch via our Facebook page or send a review via your podcast feed. Mentioned in this episode: Christopher Lamb's new book, American Hope: What Pope Leo XIV Means for the Church and the World Peter Wehner's article in The Atlantic, The American Pope vs. the American President Massimo Faggioli's Commonweal article, 'Cool' Catholicism?

One year on from the death of Pope Francis, fellow Jesuit Frank Brennan joins Geraldine Doogue to reflect on a papacy that opened doors without dismantling tradition. From issues of conscience to authority, women’s leadership, global Catholicism beyond Europe, and amid escalating war, what might Francis’s disruptive vision continue to ask of the Church today? Further reading: Francis J. Moloney, ‘The “Jews” in the Fourth Gospel’, The Gospel of John, Sacra Pagina Series (Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press, 1998), and Brendan Byrne, Life Abounding: A Reading of John’s Gospel, St Pauls, 2014, where Byrne writes on p.302: 'Personally, I believe the term “the Jews” should be expunged from all translations in public use and “the authorities” substituted in its place. Sermons and expositions are needed to educate people on the technical meaning of the phrase “the Jews” and the way in which the phrase functions in the Fourth Gospel.’ Pope Leo's Palm Sunday homily Frank Brennan's Palm Sunday homily The final synod report on women: what it says, what it means and what’s next, by America Magazine's Colleen Dulle Frank Brennan, Pope Francis: The Disruptive Pilgrim’s Guide (ATF Press, 2025) For those in Sydney, Geraldine will launch Frank's book at the Ron Dyer Centre, St Mary's North Sydney, at 6pm Monday 27 April. Thanks for listening! Share your thoughts via Facebook on more conversations in The Big Tent.

Vatican reporter and author Colleen Dulle joins Geraldine Doogue in this new year episode of The Big Tent to reflect on what it means to remain – and grow – as a Catholic in the face of disenchantment and polarisation in the institution. How might Pope Leo's Lenten call to disarm our language, 'refraining from words that offend and hurt our neighbour,' be heard by Catholics everywhere but especially in Leo's American Catholic heartland, schooled in a more permissive speech culture? And how will Leo be known by his words and actions about women and leadership in the Church? Mentioned in this episode: Pope Leo's Lenten message, Listening and Fasting: Lent as a Time of Conversion Massimo Faggioli's Commonweal article, Leo’s Transatlantic Task Hendro Munsterman's Substack article, Lay People Exercising Authority Over Clergy Colleen's book, Struck Down, Not Destroyed: Keeping the Faith as a Vatican Reporter and her reporting for America Magazine Follow us on Facebook and let us know where you'd like us to head next in 2026.

In this special episode of The Big Tent, Geraldine Doogue speaks with Sydney journalist Michael Visontay in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack at a Hanukkah festival about its impact on Jewish Australians and the broader Australian community. Drawing on research and his personal experience as the son and grandson of Holocaust survivors from Hungary, Michael’s article on how antisemitism education can backfire, published in the days before the attack, offers a now even more urgent question: how can education truly combat antisemitism in a changing Australia? Recommendations: Michael's article: Mishandled antisemitism education is not just ineffective, it’s dangerous The Jewish Independent editorial: A message from TJI at this time of profound grief Massimo Faggioli in Commonweal, No More Nostalgia: It’s time to talk about Vatican II in new ways Relisten to The Big Tent episode, Bridges not walls: Nostra Aetate at 60 Michael Visontay's book on his family history, Noble Fragments: the maverick who broke up the world’s greatest book Plus Michael's book recommendations: The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson, and The Granddaughter by Bernhard Schlink All feedback and recommendations very welcome via The Big Tent Facebook page.

What does it mean to be Catholic in 2025? Does faith need a label? Geraldine Doogue and Julie Thorpe welcome Grace Brennan and Joe Wehbe to explore their search in The Big Tent. For Grace, growing up in a Catholic home before moving to the bush and founding a business while raising four children, her connection to a faith community feels like being a guest in her own home. While for Joe, a community builder with Maronite roots and Jesuit schooling, faith is tied to purpose: 'it feels very authored.' Join Geraldine, Julie, Grace, and Joe in a candid conversation for anyone questioning, searching, or simply curious. Catch up with Grace and Joe earlier on Plenary Matters. The Big Tent picks: Joe - Japanese anime series ONE PIECE Grace - Shtum: A Novel by Jem Lester Julie - The Café With No Name by Robert Seethaler Geraldine - To Heal a Fractured World: The Ethics of Responsibility by Jonathan Sacks Thanks for listening! Follow us on Facebook for more conversation in The Big Tent.

How can churches help to solve the housing crisis? According to Rob Stokes, former NSW Liberal minister and now chair of Faith Housing Australia, tens of thousands of social and affordable homes could be built on church-owned land. He joins Graham West, former NSW Labor minister and now CEO of St Vincent de Paul Society Housing Australia, in The Big Tent with Geraldine Doogue to share how faith communities are repurposing their property to build essential housing. It's a model of Australia's multicultural, multi-faith communities in action, in partnership with government and industry, providing homes to some of the nation's most vulnerable members. Find out more about Faith Housing Australia: https://fha.org.au/ Follow The Big Tent on Facebook, and keep sending your feedback!

How does the Church stay mission-centred in a machine-centred world? That question preoccupies Kim Daniels, Director of the Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life at Georgetown University, who is also the coordinator of the Synod study group tasked by Pope Francis to report on how the Church is meeting people online. 'It's about more than just using tools,' Kim tells Geraldine, 'it's about being present and building relationships in the digital environment.' It's a message she's taking back to the new pope, Leo XIV, as he drafts his first social encyclical amid an AI revolution. Links: Austen Ivereigh's article, 'Not for likes but for love...' in The Tablet Christopher White's book, Pope Leo XIV: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy, published by Loyola Press, also available in Australia through Garratt Publishing Catch up on presentations by Hélder Câmara lecturers Dr Nora Nonterah from Ghana and Cardinal Stephen Chow SJ from Hong Kong during their visits to Australia in September. Thanks for being in The Big Tent! Find us on Facebook for more conversation.

'The Amazon is bleeding, ecologically, culturally and spiritually. And still from within this pain, hope emerges.' Mauricio López Oropeza, a prominent lay leader from Latin America, joined Geraldine Doogue for this year's 40th anniversary of the Hélder Câmara lecture series to reflect on how the Amazonian experience is reshaping global Catholicism. Bringing the voices from the peripheries to the centre isn't easy, as the Amazon synod showed, but can catholicity become the 'vaccine' against divisions in the Church and the world? Thanks to Br Mark O'Connor FMS, the Diocese of Parramatta and Newman College, where this conversation was recorded. Other links: Mauricio's address at Newman College in Catholic Outlook ‘In the rhythm of the canoe’: reflections on synodality and the Amazon by Melbourne Catholic Thanks for being in The Big Tent! Find us at our website and follow us on Facebook.

We have a new Pope. Does a new era beckon for the Catholic Church in Australia and the world? Join Geraldine Doogue and an inter-generational cast in The Big Tent, hosting an honest, contemporary search that aims, in the prophet Isaiah's words, to 'enlarge the space of your tent'. Welcome!