Unbelievable?

Austin Fischer is a church pastor who tells the story of his own struggle with doubt in the book ‘Faith In The Shadows: Finding Christ in the midst of doubt’ and how he has kept his faith. Ed Atkinson is a former Christian and co-host of the Doubts Aloud podcast. He talks about why he lost his faith and why he believes Christians should take doubt more seriously. For Austin Fischer: https://www.ivpress.com/faith-in-the-shadows  For Ed Atkinson on Doubts Aloud: https://www.spreaker.com/user/heremcast  For the Unbelievable? Christian & Skeptic Meetup group: https://www.meetup.com/Unbelievable-Christian-and-Skeptic-Discussion-Group-London/  For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter  Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes   

Michael Brown is a Messianic Jew and hosts The Line Of Fire radio show in the USA. He engages with liberal UK Reform rabbi Jonathan Romain on whether Jesus fulfilled the role of Messiah.   Michael and Jonathan end up disagreeing on much more than just Jesus as they debate the rabbi’s pluralist view of religion compared to Brown’s belief that Jesus is the only way to God.  For Michael Brown: https://askdrbrown.org   For Jonathan Romain: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonathan_Romain   For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

In the 5th episode of The Big Conversation, Justin is joined by atheist guest Daniel Dennett and Christian guest Keith Ward. Daniel C Dennett is Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University, USA and a leading naturalist voice in the philosophy of mind. Keith Ward is a British philosopher and former Regius Professor of Divinity at Oxford University as well as being an ordained priest in the Church of England.. They debate physicalism, idealism, the ‘hard problem’ of consciousness, whether an objective moral realm exists, freewill vs determinism and whether robots could have an immortal soul  Watch the video debate and subscribe to the newsletter at https://www.thebigconversation.show/daniel-dennett-and-keith-ward  For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

In this podcast special edition of the show Justin broadcasts the 2008 public debate between Christopher Hitchens and his brother Peter Hitchens. Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011) was one of the four so-called ‘horsemen of the new atheism’, well known for his colourful anti-theistic polemical writing and speaking. In contrast his journalist brother Peter Hitchens is a Christian who converted from atheism in his adult years. In this classic public debate from 2008, hosted by the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies at Grand Valley State University, both men debate the Iraq war, the case for God and respond to questions from the 1,400 strong audience. For the Hauenstein Center: https://www.gvsu.edu/hc/ For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

Thousands of people recently attended four high-profile debates on religion and atheism between psychology professor Jordan Peterson and atheist writer Sam Harris. Why are Peterson and Harris so influential, especially among young men? Why is Peterson’s approach making waves in atheist circles? Does the atheist movement have an alt-right problem? These and more questions are debated by Humanist leader James Croft and Christian blogger Esther O’Reilly as they discuss the popularity of Peterson and Harris and whether Christianity or secular humanism can answer the questions people are asking. For the Peterson / Harris debates: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jey_CzIOfYE  For Esther O’Reilly: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/youngfogey/2018/07/sam-harris-asks-questions-jordan-peterson-cant-answer/  For James Croft: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/templeofthefuture/2018/04/the-atheist-alt-right-connection/  For The Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter  Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

Justin is joined by Christian apologist Sean McDowell and ‘Friendly Atheist’ blogger Hemant Mehta for a live audience edition of the show recorded at Westside A Jesus Church in Portland, Oregon. They discuss motivations, faith, science, evidence, atheism, life after death, morality and bigotry. Each guest sets out two ways in which they believe the other side frequently mischaracterises their worldview. Includes audience Q&A. Watch the video: https://youtu.be/Hhuxq7wLpFc  For Sean: https://seanmcdowell.org/ For Hemant: http://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/  For The Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

In the 4th episode of The Big Conversation, Justin is joined by Prof John Lennox and Prof Michael Ruse in front of a live audience in London. Christian guest John Lennox is professor of Mathematics at Oxford University and author of books including ‘Gunning for God: Why the new atheists are missing the target’. Atheist guest Michael Ruse is professor of Philosophy of Science at Florida State University and author of books such as ‘Darwin and Design: Does Evolution Have a Purpose?’. They debate their different perspectives as a Christian and atheist on science, evidence, faith , miracles, suffering and more. The dialogue was followed by an audience Q&A which you can also receive as a bonus video by subscribing to the Unbelievable? newsletter at https://www.thebigconversation.show/john-lennox-and-michael-ruse For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

Ed Husain was once a Muslim extremist. Today he is still a Muslim but says the Islam he once practised is a distorted version of the faith. In his new book The House of Islam: A Global History he argues that his religion needs to return to a once-golden age of pluralism, tolerance and diversity. Beth Grove of Pfander regularly engages in debate with Muslims. She disputes Ed’s view of a golden age of Islam, saying that both Muslim history and scriptures advocate violence and mistreatment of women. For The House of Islam by Ed Husain https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/the-house-of-islam-9781408872260/  For Beth Grove: https://www.pfander.uk/ For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

Justin joins the debate fray himself this week as he tag teams with Christian apologist Randal Rauser to defend Unbelievable? the book against two atheist critics David Johnson and Andrew Knight. Since Justin’s book ‘Unbelievable? why, after ten years of talking with atheists I’m still a Christian’ was published, Andrew and David, along with other sceptical show listeners, have produced a response book called ‘Still Unbelievable? Why, after listening to Christian arguments, we remain skeptics’. They debate the moral argument, the resurrection, and the Christian view of reality. For Unbelievable? the book http://www.unbelievablebook.co.uk For Still Unbelievable: https://www.reasonpress.net/  For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Unbelievable? the Conference USA, Portland, 31 Aug & Sat 1 Sep https://westsideajc.org/unbelievable-conference Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes

Keep kalam and carry on... In the second of two ‘deep dive’ shows into philosophical arguments for God, Justin is joined by atheist YouTuber Stephen Woodford (aka Rationality Rules) and Christian apologist Blake Giunta, creator of the Belief Map website. They debate the Kalam Cosmological Argument and whether, if the universe had a beginning, it points to a divine cause behind it. For a video of today’s show on the Rationality Rules channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqZMgLgGlYAWvSU8lZ9xiVg  For Blake Giunta: https://beliefmap.org/   For Big Conversation videos, updates and bonus content sign up: http://www.thebigconversation.show  Unbelievable? the Conference USA, Portland, 31 Aug & Sat 1 Sep https://westsideajc.org/unbelievable-conference  Get signed copies of Unbelievable? the book and audiobook: www.unbelievablebook.co.uk  For more faith debates visit http://www.premierchristianradio.com/Shows/Saturday/Unbelievable Join the conversation: Facebook and Twitter Get the MP3 Podcast of Unbelievable? Via RSS or Via Itunes