The Wholly Spirited

"So many people aren't religious and are really good people"My wonderful sister, Bridget, and I sat down to chat about her experience living life with and without religion and what it feels like to discover your own outlook on life. She has some pearls of wisdom to share and is about to start her career as a Doctor helping humanity, I loved hearing about her experiences. Enjoy!

Listen along this Christmas season to learn about how our favourite icon, the jolly man in red, came to be. Who is St Nicholas and why do we all know his name and not his story? There's so much to discover. PLUS Listen out for some clutter-free gift ideas at the end of the episode!Referenceshttps://www.britannica.com/topic/Santa-Claushttps://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/131219-santa-claus-origin-history-christmas-facts-st-nicholashttps://www.frugalandthriving.com.au/non-stuff-gift-ideas/

It's Tarot time! Join me as I find out the what, how and why of Tarot, including a quick history lesson and exploration of the meaning behind some of the cards. I finish with a quick self-led Tarot reading so have fun listening along. PS the rule of Tarot is you can't buy yourself Tarot cards, so go out and gift some to someone today!References:https://www.learnreligions.com/tarot-cards-and-their-meanings-2562806https://www.britannica.com/topic/tarotBook: "Tarot: Your Personal Guide" by Steven Bright (2018).

In this episode we unpack the data from the 2021 Australian Census with a focus on the questions about religion. Listen to find out about the trends and changes, particularly from 2016 to now. Data was taken from the ABS website, see the sites below.https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/people-and-communities/cultural-diversity-census/2021https://www.abs.gov.au/articles/religious-affiliation-australia

This month's sidetracked episode looks at the influence of religious texts and guidelines for dietary restrictions... basically what a range of believers are encouraged/not encouraged to eat to be people of good faith. We do a quick dive into Buddhism, Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism and Islam before discussing some personal reasons people may have when making choices about food.  Bon Appetite. References below https://www.wise-geek.com/why-do-some-religions-have-dietary-restrictions.htm  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_and_drink_prohibitions https://www.chapman.edu/campus-life/fish-interfaith-center/_files/religious-dietary-restrictions.pdf https://thrivemeetings.com/2018/01/religious-dietary-restrictions-guide/ http://www.pureland-victoria.org/cos/o.x?c=/wbn/pagetree&func=view&rid=1071771 https://www.independentnurse.co.uk/clinical-article/religion-and-dietary-choices/145719/

Ahhh, human connection is everything. In this conversation you are fortunate enough to meet Katie, a gem of a friend who is there for her people through thick and thin. She has a very unique and special view of religion in her life (that doesn't involve a God) and I had so much fun unpacking it with her. Enjoy! PS we have an intro song.

For mature ears only... hehe. This episode looks at the place of sex in different faiths in our world: Who can have sex? When can you have sex? Why should you have sex? I do not touch on sexuality in this episode but just focus on the act itself - that's for another ep! Sources:  https://www.patheos.com/blogs/sermonsfromthemound/2016/10/ erotic-religion-the-body-and-sex-for-wiccans-and-pagans/  https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize

What's been happening? What's for dinner? Will TWS continue in 2022? A little hello (and thank you) from me where I answer the big questions. HINT: Yes I've had so much fun and there will be more episodes this year.