Why religious societies succeed – with Rory Sutherland

Advertising guru – and the Spectator's Wiki Man columnist – Rory Sutherland joins Damian Thompson for this episode of Holy Smoke. In a wide ranging discussion, from Sigmund Freud and Max Weber to Quakers and Mormons, they discuss how some religious communities seem to be predisposed to success by virtue of their beliefs. How do spiritual choices affect consumer choices? Between Android and Apple, which is more Protestant and which is more Catholic? And what can modern Churches learn from Capitalism? Produced by Patrick Gibbons. Become a Spectator subscriber today to access this podcast without adverts. Go to spectator.co.uk/adfree to find out more. For more Spectator podcasts, go to spectator.co.uk/podcasts . Contact us: podcast@spectator.co.uk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You can listen to Why religious societies succeed – with Rory Sutherland online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Why religious societies succeed – with Rory Sutherland is an episode from Holy Smoke by The Spectator.

This episode is 35:06 long.

This episode was published on Dec 16, 2025.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Holy Smoke when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.