Language of God

Sally Bingham, the founder of Interfaith Power & Light (IPL), and the Canon of the Environment for the Diocese of California, shares the story of the inception of IPL and discusses the influential role that churches and faith communities can play in the effort to reduce climate change impacts.  Learn more about Interfaith Power & Light Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

In the summer of 2022 Dawn Wright became only the 27th person ever, the fifth woman, and the first Black person to descend into the deepest part of the ocean, a place called Challenger Deep. As a scientist, Dawn has been studying and helping to map the depths of the ocean, but being there in person uncovered a new dimension and deepened her connection with the mysterious underwater world. In the episode, Colin and Dawn talk about the science of mapping, the world of deep sea submersibles, and how finding trash in the most remote places of our planet might spark a renewed sense of stewardship for all of God’s creation.  Additional Resources Story Map of Dawn's Challenger Deep Dive Explore Challenger Deep Map in GIS Animated video of Alvin Dive Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.  

Deb Liu, the CEO of Ancestry, and Francis Collins, the previous director of the NIH and leader of the Human Genome project, delve into the fascinating world of genetic science, exploring its implications on our understanding of human identity, ancestry and health. Throughout the conversation they also share stories and reflections on how their Christian faith motivates their work and sheds light on the ethical and moral considerations that arise when navigating the complex world of genetic research and its applications.  The episode was recorded in front of a live audience in San Francisco in late April 2023.  Additional Resources All of Us Research Program Take Back Your Power by Deb Liu Ancestry.com Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.  

Jason Fileta didn’t start out as an environmental activist. His first passion was to alleviate the suffering of the poor and hungry. As he met and heard the stories from those struggling with poverty and hunger he often asked them the question: if we could get a million Christians in North America to raise their voices on an issue that impacts your community, what would it be? He was surprised when a farmer in Uganda said climate change. But then he started to hear story after story of how climate change has made the lives of people harder, and this has led Jason to understand the deep connection between our caring for the planet and the lives of the poor and hungry around the world.  This episode original aired on September 30th, 2021. Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

When the wind is just right, on a small beach in Titusville, Florida, horseshoe crabs crawl out of the water and onto the beach to lay their eggs. Jim and Colin joined up with two marine biologists—Bob Sluka who works with A Rocha, a Christian conservation organization and Margaret Miller, a coral biologist who works with SECORE International—and three A Rocha interns to survey the horseshoe crabs. That experience began an exploration into paying attention to many of the creatures that surround us, extending hospitality, and learning from the creatures, even from the ocean itself, about how we might better worship the creator of it all.  Additional Resources: Learn about A Rocha Do your own nurdle hunt Atlantic Article about Synthetic alternatives to LAL Radiolab Episode about Horseshoe Crabs Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Kyle Meyaard-Schaap, author and climate activist, discusses the importance of integrating climate action into faith. He shares his journey from skepticism to curiosity about climate change rooted in Christianity. The work of Evangelical Environmental Network and Young Evangelicals for Climate Action in addressing climate change is explored. The link between the planet's health and the church's health is discussed, along with the hope for a new creation. The role of imagination in building hope and motivating action is emphasized.

Over the season of lent we’ve been reading excerpts from Gayle Boss’ Book Wild Hope. In this episode we talk to Gayle about where the book came from and about how the stories of wild and imperiled creatures can help us into the story of Christ and his journey to the cross.  Find out More about Wild Hope and Gayle's other books. Thanks to Paraclete Press which gave permission for the experts from Wild Hope throughout lent. www.paracletepress.com Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

As a sociologist, Brandon Vaidyanathan has been studying what scientists think about beauty. Some people might be surprised that scientists think much about beauty at all, but for many scientists, beauty is an important reason for why they do the work that they do. Brandon talks about his research and the different ways scientists understand beauty to be a part of understanding the world and also tells the story of his conversion to Christianity and how he found his way to sociology.  Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

This Lent we’re reading reflections from Wild Hope: Stories for Lent from the Vanishing, by Gayle Boss. We’ll end with an interview with Gayle Boss in the last week of Lent.  The reflections from Wild Hope are grouped into five different weeks, with four creatures in each week, through the season of Lent and four more during Holy Week. Week five is "the Hunted" and the story is about the hawksbill turtle. Wild Hope: Stories for Lent from the Vanishing by Gayle Boss, illustrated by David G. Klein Copyright 2020:  text by Gayle Boss, illustrations by David G. Klein Used by permission of Paraclete Press www.paracletepress.com

In the debut of a new podcast Book Club feature we take on the novel Transcendent Kingdom by Yaa Gyasi about a young PhD candidate in neuroscience struggling with questions about mental health, the problem of evil, and how to reconcile the evangelical faith she grew up with and her career in science. We asked three guests to join us to discuss the book. Lynette Strickland recently finished a PhD in biology, Rachel Wahlberg is a neuroscience graduate student herself, and Christina Bieber Lake is a literature professor.  Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.