John Anderson: Conversations – Details, episodes & analysis

In this conversation, Josh Hammer examines the perilous moral confusion of our age through the prism of Israel and its survival. The attacks of October 7 and the confused global response revealed, he argues, a civilisation that has lost confidence in truth itself. When so many can no longer distinguish between barbarism and freedom, the very survival of Western civilisation is at stake. Hammer maintains that the West’s survival depends on rediscovering its biblical foundations in Judaism and Christianity. Without recovering that foundation, the West cannot withstand the mounting pressures of relativism, Islamist extremism, and cultural Marxism. This is a sobering but vital discussion on Israel, anti-Semitism, and the future of the West. Joshua Hammer is the author of Israel and Civilization: The Fate of the Jewish Nation and the Destiny of the West. He is a syndicated columnist through Creators Syndicate, senior editor-at-large for Newsweek, and host of The Josh Hammer Show.

In this conversation, Greg Sheridan explores Christianity’s defining influence on Western civilisation, showing how its revolutionary impact—from the early Church through to modern times—has shaped culture, morality, and human dignity. 

He argues that the decline of faith in recent generations has coincided with deep cultural and societal crises, and he calls for a renewed recognition of Christianity’s enduring value.

Through vivid stories of early believers and contemporary figures, Sheridan illustrates how Christian faith continues to offer repair, renewal, and meaning in a fragmented world.

Greg Sheridan is one of Australia’s most prominent journalists and commentators on culture, politics, and religion. He serves as Foreign Editor at The Australian and is the author of multiple bestselling books on Christianity in the modern world.His trilogy includes God is Good for You, Christians: The Urgent Case for Jesus in Our World, and his latest work, How Christians Can Succeed Today.

Which can be purchased here: https://koorong.com/product/how-christians-can-succeed-today-reclaiming-the-genius_9781761471124

-------------------------------------------------------------------Conversations feature John Anderson, former Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, interviewing the world's foremost thought leaders about today's pressing social, cultural and political issues.

John believes proper, robust dialogue is necessary if we are to maintain our social strength and cohesion. As he puts it; "You cannot get good public policy out of a bad public debate."

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John Anderson and Dr. Rebeccah Heinrichs examine the geopolitical consequences of the conflict between Israel and Iran, highlighting the United States’ role in shaping global security and the future of the Middle East. They discuss how President Trump’s decisive military strike on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure has undermined Tehran's influence and reasserted US supremacy in the region.

The conversation reflects on the rise of anti-Semitism, the misguided pursuit of a two-state solution, and the importance of standing with strong allies like Israel. It underscores how pivotal a strong US response in the Middle East is to a strategy of deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, particularly with regard to Taiwan. Dr. Heinrichs criticises Australia's reluctance to strengthen its own defence capabilities in this context, expressing the hope that Australia will choose to collaborate more closely with the United States in an era of mounting global uncertainty.

Dr. Rebeccah L. Heinrichs is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute and the director of its Keystone Defense Initiative. Dr. Heinrichs specialises in US national defense policy with a focus on strategic deterrence. Dr. Heinrichs is an adjunct professor at the Institute of World Politics, where she teaches nuclear deterrence theory, and is also a contributing editor of Providence: A Journal of Christianity and American Foreign Policy.

John is joined again by author and historian Victor Davis Hanson to review the current State of the Union of American States as they approach the midterm elections.

In this conversation, John joins Tom Holland in his London home to discuss Christianity’s role in shaping Western civilisation. Holland prompts us to reflect on the intricate moral web our society still upholds today and consider the intertwined history of the Western imagination and Christianity.

John is joined by Professor James Tooley, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Buckingham, for an insightful conversation about the role of education in the modern age, the relationship between parental and government oversight in education systems, the differences between public and private education, ideological uniformity in universities and more.

John is joined by mathematician, bioethicist and Christian apologist Professor John Lennox for a profound conversation centered on the current and future impacts of artificial intelligence technology. They discuss the shortcomings of science in the search for universal truth, the factors behind rising secularism in the West, China’s rapid AI implementation, our growing desire for immortality through biomedicine and the true meaning of 'faith’.

John is joined by renowned American legal scholar Richard A. Epstein for a discussion about American society in the wake of the overturn of Roe vs. Wade by the Supreme Court. Professor Epstein traces major changes in American legal theory and governance from independence through to the present, highlighting the shift in legislative power from the local to the national level and increasing activism by and politicisation of the Supreme Court.

In this Direct interview, John is joined by Baroness Claire Fox for a discussion about British politics and society in the aftermath of Boris Johnson's resignation. The Baroness' fascinating background lends particular weight into her insights into matters including free speech, the power of bureaucracy, the green movement and cultural pessimism, among others.

John is joined by author and theologian Professor Nigel Biggar, for an insightful conversation on crucial ethical, historical, and philosophical questions, centred on the British Empire. They discuss war and whether it can be justified, the history of the world’s greatest empires and slavery within those empires, the British empire’s unbalanced reputation, rights and wrongs of colonisation, academic dishonesty in universities and more.