154: Against the machine with Stephen McAlpine

Every now and then, a book comes along that makes such a sweeping, powerful and insightful argument about the nature of our lives, our world and our culture that it leaves you disturbed and almost disoriented, as if the ground has shifted under your feet and you’re not quite sure where you’re standing anymore. Paul Kingsnorth’s book, Against the Machine, is like this. It’s very broadly speaking a Christian book—or at least, is written from the perspective of a Christian worldview—and it makes a quite stunning argument about the dysfunctional nature of our contemporary, very technological machine-like society that resonates very deeply and yet raises many questions.In this episode of the CCL podcast, Tony Payne talks to speaker, author and cultural analyst Stephen McAlpine about these questions, and about the strengths and weaknesses of Kingsnorth’s book and what it means for our lives as Christians in this machine-like culture we inhabit.For an edited transcript and show notes, visit our website.To ask questions or to get in touch with us about this series, send us a voice memo or email to ccl AT moore edu au.Find out more and register for “Left right out: The strange position of the political Christian” (Wed 20 May 2026)Support the work of the Centre by making a tax-deductible donation.Please note: The episode transcript on your podcast platform may have been generated by AI and has not been checked for accuracy. If quoting, please check against the audio.