Language of God

In a world of increasing division, Mónica Guzmán offers advice for approaching conversation with curiosity. When we attempt to understand those who we disagree with, instead of merely attempting to change their beliefs, we are able to see people more fully and to even learn more about our own beliefs and ideas.  Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum. Donate to BioLogos

A reflection on dragonflies, neurobiology, attention and the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.  Support BioLogos Music in the episode is by Brian Mulder. (Spotify) Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Larry Molnar spent years with his astronomy students studying a contact binary star system. Their observations and data eventually led them to make the claim that the stars were headed toward an explosion called a luminous red nova, a major discovery. The story of these stars and of the scientists who study them highlight the ways that science leads to knowledge about the world, and not always in straightforward ways.  Support BioLogos Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

The church has had a complicated relationship with mental health. Research shows that 1 in 5 adults experience mental illness in a given year and yet 66% of pastors talk about mental health in sermons only once a year or less. In the episode we break down what exactly mental illness and mental health are, what is happening in the brain, and how the church can respond in ways that help us all to be healthier individuals and begin to build a more understanding, empathetic and healthy community.   Theme song and credits music by Breakmaster Cylinder. Other music in this episode by Tiny Music, Lift Music, Magnetize Music, Sirus Music, Pink Marble and Vesper Tapes, courtesy of Shutterstock, Inc. Find Resources on Mental Health Support BioLogos Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Biblical interpretation is all about asking questions—How did Ancient Israel understand the book of Genesis? How much context do we, as modern readers, need to discover the intended meaning of the text? Does the text hold the answers to the questions we are asking? Jim and guest host Rebecca McLaughlin discuss these thorny questions with biblical scholar John Walton and explore the answers his work offers them.  This episode was originally aired on September 19, 2019 Support BioLogos Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Katey Walter Anthony has done much of her research deep in the arctic, studying the methane bubbles that are released in thawed permafrost lakes. What she has learned helps us to better understand the complexity of earth’s climate and how it might change in the future. But alongside the exciting story of her scientific journey is a story about how she has come to understand God’s place in it all. Support BioLogos Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Both science and the Christian faith share a commitment to humility. Each also provides us with a perspective of the world which we believe to be true. How then do we hold onto these things we believe to be true and be open to the fact that we can’t know everything? In this episode we explore that tension, looking into the deeper meaning of humility in the realms of both science and faith.  Thanks to our guests in exploring these ideas: psychologist, Charlotte vanOyen-Witvliet; theologian and poet, Padraig Ó Tuama; biologist, Steve Roels; and evolutionary biologist, Sarah Bodbyl Roels.  This episode originally aired on October 8, 2020. Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Charles Foster has spent a lot of time trying to deeply understand what it is like to be other than himself. It has led him to explore and emulate the life of badgers, foxes, and swifts as well as the lives of Paleolithic hunter-gatherers. In doing so he hopes to better understand all the people in his world and ultimately himself. He talks about his journey from a curious and wandering child to who he is today, including the place of religion and the place of science, both of which have the opportunity of enriching our view of the world and allowing to see into the other, but which also have the possibility of limiting our openness to inhabit otherness and therefore hinder our ability to better understand God. Support BioLogos Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Andy Gosler is an ethno-ornithologist, studying the relationships between people and birds. We talk about what that means and the importance of knowing the names of the living creatures around us, as we walk through an ancient hay meadow on a gray day in Oxfordshire, UK. Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.

Kids ask a lot of questions. When those questions come to hard topics about science and faith it can be tempting to dismiss them or brush them off or to think they are too young to engage with the questions. But often this shows children that their questions are not welcome and that their curiosity is dangerous. Lizzie Henderson and Faith Stults both work on developing resources for children to engage in the science and faith conversation and they sit down to talk about ways to encourage questions and creativity so that children can grow up with the tools to explore hard concepts without fear and without the thought that they must choose between faith and science. Join a conversation about this episode on the BioLogos Forum.