# Religious Motivation Is Real by Russell Blackford

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/free-inquiry-audio-edition-7055830/religious-motivation-is-real-by-russell-blackford
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/free-inquiry-audio-edition-7055830/religious-motivation-is-real-by-russell-blackford.md
Podcast: [Free Inquiry Audio Edition](https://stenobird.com/podcast/free-inquiry-audio-edition-7055830)
Published: 2026-03-30T17:02:00+00:00
Episode link: https://646ef2be-1f48-43ae-b5f1-b4ac9bd4e95a.libsyn.com/religious-motivation-is-real-by-russell-blackford
Audio file: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/646ef2be-1f48-43ae-b5f1-b4ac9bd4e95a/Russell_Blackford_-_Religious_Motivation_Is_Real_-_AI_Oscar_en_v2.mp3?dest-id=4608757
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Duration seconds: 465

## Resource

Russell Blackford argues that religious motivation—particularly in cases of jihadist violence—is often downplayed or denied in Western discourse despite clear evidence to the contrary. Using a recent terrorist attack as a case study, he contends that labeling such acts as unrelated to religion obscures their ideological roots and hinders honest analysis. Read this article and find accompanying references at: secularhumanism.org/2026/03/religious-motivation-is-real/ About the Author: Russell Blackford is a conjoint senior lecturer in philosophy at the University of Newcastle (Australia) and a regular columnist for Free Inquiry. His latest book, The Tyranny of Opinion: Conformity and the Future of Liberalism (2019), is published by Bloomsbury Academic. Subscribe to Free Inquiry: https://secularhumanism.org/subscribe/

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