Language of God

In this conversation with acclaimed Stanford neuroscientist Dr. Bill Newsome, we hear about his journey to becoming a neuroscientist, how hundreds of millions of neurons enable the fantastic emergence of a unified visual world, and how free will might operate in relation to the seemingly infinite causal chains which bring us all to this moment. Along the way, Dr. Newsome shares his own experiences with science and faith and why biological explanations should not be seen as weapons beating back the claims of Christianity. 

Read Bill’s article, “Life of science, life of faith”, here

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The roaring current of stubborn partisan standoffs challenges us to cement ourselves in our views; dialogue erodes as we ditch the public conversation to wrap ourselves in the self-affirming comfort of our isolated belief nooks. Among the most well-acquainted with this phenomenon is On Being host Krista Tippett, who worked as a journalist and diplomat in Cold War Berlin. But she sees something else as well: a hunger for honest conversation. In this episode, Jim talks with Krista about how her work attempts to feed that desire—and where science and faith live in that discussion.

Explore the Better Conversations Guide.

This episode originally aired on August 29, 2019

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Proponents of intelligent design and evolutionary creation have some different ideas about the relationship of science and faith, and relations between BioLogos and the Discovery Institute have not always been easy. But there is some common ground. We explore some of that common ground in this episode while also discussing the philosophical differences between the positions. Stephen Meyer is a leading advocate for intelligent design and is the Director for the Center for Science and Culture at the Discovery Institute, and his new book, Return of the God Hypothesis, frames this conversation.

This was meant to be a conversation and not a debate and so the intention was not to stop every time a claim was made that we disagree with. Instead, we made a companion piece to this episode where we point to many resources that do respond to these claims and help to further explain some of the philosophical concepts covered in this conversation.

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Earth Day has not always been a holiday widely celebrated by the Christian Church. It might have something to do with the fact that many Christians have been told that they can’t be both a Christian and an environmentalist. Sandra Richter was told the same thing, but as she studied to become a professor of Old Testament, she found a rich biblical basis for caring for the earth, and she found that in doing so we are also caring for the widow, the orphan and the oppressed. Drawing from her recent book, Stewards of Eden, she helps to break down the biblical call for stewardship and leaves us with a message of hope and encouragement.

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Polling data tells us Christians are the most hesitant group in the United States about receiving the COVID-19 vaccines. Yet research on the vaccines show that they are incredibly safe and effective. It’s clear that if we want to get past this pandemic, our Christian community needs a radical reorientation based on sound evidence and an abundance of grace. Offering perspectives rooted in Biblical faith, Dr. Francis Collins and Dr. David Anderson join in conversation about how Christians can bring about the end of the pandemic. Dr. Collins brings a depth of scientific knowledge alongside Dr Anderson’s pastoral wisdom to talk about the vaccine and the hesitancy many people harbor about the vaccines. In doing so, these renowned spiritual leaders lay the groundwork for Christians to build bridges toward healing and change. 

This conversation was originally aired as a livestream video event on April 11, 2021.

Original music in this episode is by Carp.

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Joel Chopp and Geoff Fulkerson are the editors of a new book called Science and the Doctrine of Creation: The Approaches of Ten Modern Theologians (InterVarsity Press, 2021). In the episode Geoff, Joel and Jim talk about the doctrine of creation itself before taking a look at four of the ten theologians in the book to see how they have influenced the conversations around faith and science. 

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Dan Kuebler got his undergraduate degree in English—it was not until his senior year that he joined his first lab and fell in love with biology. He joins Jim on this episode to discuss what fascinated him about science, and how his subsequent career as a biology professor has impacted his faith as a Catholic believer. The conversation covers his experience as a graduate student at University of California Berkeley, later work on science and faith (exemplified by The Evolution Controversy, which Dan co-authored with Thomas Fowler), and the impact all this has on his approach to science and faith education as Dean of the School of Natural and Applied Sciences at Franciscan University of Steubenville, Ohio.

Read the article Dan coauthored with Dennis Venema here.

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With the rollout of several different COVID-19 vaccines and the prominence of anti-vaxx groups, gracious conversations between opposing sides are increasingly difficult to initiate. Yet when our family members and friends voice doubts about a vaccine’s safety or effectiveness, these are the exact conversations needed to bridge that divide. Our two guests on today’s episode, Curtis Chang and David French, offer eminently approachable places to start. Two well-known voices in the conservative Christian arena, Curtis and David are passionate about having informed and empathetic discussions around vaccination. Whether you have doubts about the vaccine or are trying to find common ground where you and your family members or friends can broach these difficult topics, this conversation is a great place to start. 

Curtis Chang is not only a consulting professor in innovation and organization at Duke Divinity School but also founder and head of Consulting Within Reach, a firm which aims to help nonprofits implement best practices to more effectively achieve their goals. David French is a former lawyer and current writer. He was a fellow at the National Review Institute and staff writer for National Review from 2015 to 2019. Currently, he serves as senior editor of The Dispatch. Curtis and David collaborated on a series of videos addressing common concerns Christians have around the vaccine called Christians and the Vaccine. For more on this resource, check the link below. 

Check out the videos mentioned in the episode at Christians and the Vaccine homepage.

Read David French's newsletter.

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In 2017 Andy Crouch wrote My Tech Wise family, a practical book about how to have a healthy relationship to technology. In that book was a foreword by his daughter Amy, who called herself Test Subject Number 2. Well Amy has gotten a bit older since that book and has written one of her own, an expansion of sorts to My Tech-Wise Family called My Tech-Wise Life. 

My Tech-Wise Life is a book filled with wisdom along with practical tips on how to flourish in a world in which technology often pulls us away from reality. In the episode we talk about the book and dig into the differences between science and technology and the balance between when technology is adding to or taking away from our role as image bearers of God. 

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Dr. Fatima Cody Stanford has seen the effects of how healthcare is provided differently across the population, both in her work and in her own experiences as a patient in the healthcare system. One outcome of the disparities in healthcare—the mistrust of the healthcare system—is now hindering the ability to get vaccinations to many of those who are at risk. We talk about the causes and some possible solutions and look at how some of the same issues play out in the treatment of obesity—the most prevalent chronic disease in the United States.

Learn more about the Black Women's Health Study

Read the article Beyond Tuskegee—Vaccine Distrust and Everyday Racism (in the New England Journal of Medicine)

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