Explore the spiritual beliefs and experiences of supposedly secular Anzacs largely through their own words

Anzac has become the spiritual core of what it means to be Australian but what of the spiritual core of the Anzacs themselves?

Explore with Associate Professor Daniel Reynaud the spiritual beliefs and experiences of the Anzacs largely through their own words.

Far from being indifferent to spiritual matters, the diaries and letters of more than 1000 soldiers of the First Australian Imperial Force reveal an interest in matters of the soul and a deep engagement with God, religion and the human spirit.

Reynaud read the correspondence for his new book, Anzac Spirituality.

Presented by Sydney Adventist Forum and Avondale College of Higher Education.

Sydney Adventist Forum collects a freewill offering to support its ministry.

Biography

Daniel Reynaud is Associate Professor of History in the Discipline of Humanities and Creative Arts at Avondale College of Higher Education. His main research interests lie in the challenging aspects of Anzac mythology, especially in cinema and on religion, where the notion of the secularity of the Anzacs has reached dogmatic proportions. Previous publications include Celluloid Anzacs (Australian Scholarly Publishing, 2007) and The Man the Anzacs Revered: William “Fighting Mac” McKenzie (Signs Publishing, 2015). Reynaud has written, and appeared in, seven documentaries about the Anzacs and religion. He has also worked with the National Film and Sound Archive in the recovery and partial reconstruction of several silent films, including The Hero of the Dardanelles (1915), Australia’s first Gallipoli movie.