Language of God
Religion & Spirituality
About
BioLogos brings you a podcast about science and Christian Faith. Featuring the voices of experts & thinkers, scientists & theologians, and stories from people who are finding a harmony between faith and science.
Episodes
- 208. Tish Harrison Warren | A Grammar for Weariness
In a world that often feels relentlessly exhausting, weariness can seem like something to fix, escape, or push through. But what if it’s also a place where something deeper is happening? In this episode, Anglican priest and writer Tish Har…
- 208. NT Wright | New Creation Breaking In
New Testament scholar N.T. Wright sits down with Jim Stump to explore how Christians should think about the past, the future, and the story that holds them together. What does it mean to say that something in the Bible “really happened”? A…
- 207. Ayaan Hirsi Ali | The Shape of Belief
What happens when one of the world’s most prominent former atheists becomes a Christian—and claims that faith actually strengthens reason and science? In this episode, Jim Stump sits down with author and public intellectual Ayaan Hirsi Ali…
- 206. Jessica Malaty Rivera | Making Sense from the Noise
In this episode, infectious disease epidemiologist and science communicator Jessica Malaty Rivera reflects on what it means to help people make sense of science in the midst of uncertainty. Drawing on her experience during the COVID-19 pan…
- 205. Cool Creatures | Lemurs
What if one of our closest relatives had taken a completely different evolutionary path? In this episode of Language of God, we continue our Cool Creatures series with a journey to Madagascar and also to the Duke Lemur Center, to explore t…
- 204. Marilynne Robinson | Something Vast and Inexplicable Happened
Genesis has long been a flashpoint in conversations about science and faith. Is it history? Poetry? Theology? Some combination of all three? For decades, BioLogos has returned to this ancient text as we wrestle with questions about creatio…
- 203. Sabrina Little | Run in Such A Way
Elite ultra-runner Sabrina Little has logged national titles and set the American record for the greatest distance run in 24 hours. But for her, the real significance of running isn’t found in podium finishes or record books. It’s found in…
- 202. Becoming the Answer | Something is Stirring (Part Two)
The second episode turns toward resilience—without pretending that the climate crisis is solved. At COP30, amid formal speeches and stalled negotiations, the episode highlights moments of disruption, protest, and lived wisdom, especially f…
- 201. Becoming the Answer | Why Climate Facts Aren’t Enough (Part One)
The story begins in Brazil at COP30, the United Nations climate summit, where global leaders gather to address climate change. From there, it steps back to ask a deeper question: what kind of problem is climate change, really? Moving from…
- 200. Seeking Wholeness in a Fractured World
A season of reflection led us back into years of past conversations, where unexpected threads began to intertwine. In this episode, we bring those threads into conversation with each other—voices like Makoto Fujimura, Praveen Sethupathy, K…
- BONUS | Live from COP30
Jim and Colin report from Belém, Brazil and the halls of COP30.
- 199. Spiritual Yearning in Science
In a world that has sometimes been called “disenchanted,” we have to ask, does science really strip the world of mystery—or might science actually awaken us to something deeper? Sociologist Brandon Vaidyanathan has been exploring this ques…
- 198. Cool Creatures | Ferns
You might think of ferns—if you think of them much at all—as the unassuming and understated members of the plant world. What could they teach us about philosophy or theology or wonder? It turns out quite a lot. When we explore that strange…
- 197. Rebecca Copeland | Wicked Problems and Unoriginal Sin
Theologian Rebecca Copeland joins Jim Stump to talk about how we think about sin in a world full of wicked problems—complex, interconnected issues like climate change, inequality, and mistrust in science. Our usual theological categories o…
- 108. Debra Rienstra | The Discipline of Hope
Our best scientific models make it clear that society needs a big change at a global scale in order to limit irreversible damage—what good can individual actions and attitudes do in the face of this immense problem? Today’s guest, Debra Ri…
- 196. Cool Creatures | Ticks
Ticks are among the most detested creatures in all of nature—but what happens when we look closer? In this Cool Creatures episode, Colin follows Calvin University professor Will Miller and some of his students into the field as they study…
- 195. Rob Dunn & Aminah Bradford | The Spirituality of Paying Attention
What happens when a theologian and an evolutionary biologist walk into a lab together—one asking questions about God through the strange world of microbes, the other studying the tiny ecosystems in our armpits and sourdough starters? In th…
- 194. Sy Garte | Life’s Deeper Logic
Far from the old picture of life as a mindless, mechanical process, new research is showing that even the simplest organisms—like bacteria—exhibit signs of purpose, agency, and decision-making. Biologist and author Sy Garte returns to Lang…
- 193. Science is Good | Wisdom, Stewardship, & Mercy in Three Stories
Born out of a cultural moment of growing distrust in science, BioLogos’ Science is Good initiative explores how Christians can be a voice for the goodness of science. The episode connects the three parables of Matthew 25—about wisdom, stew…
- 192. Dorothy Boorse | The Eyes of Flies are like Jewels
Dorothy Boorse describes herself as a child who used to be caught up looking at ants and other small and overlooked things. Later microscopes enhanced the possibilities of her attention. She followed science as it revealed its beauty to he…
- 191. A Tale of Two Conflicts | Scopes, Teilhard, and 100 Years of Hindsight
In July of 1925, two significant dramas unfolded on different continents—the Scopes “Monkey” Trial in Tennessee and the censure of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin in France— shaping the enduring conversation between science and faith. On the su…
- 190. Jay Butler | The Ministry of Public Health
Dr. Jay Butler is an infectious disease physician, epidemiologist, and former Deputy Director for Infectious Diseases at the CDC. We had the joy of hosting Dr Butler in the BioLogos offices recently where we shared his perspective on publi…
- 189. Ancient Humans | Becoming Spiritual (Neolithic)
From the earliest bipedal ancestors to the dawn of spiritual awareness, we delve into the archaeological, anthropological, and theological questions surrounding our shared past. Join us over two episodes as we uncover the blurred lines bet…
- 188. Ancient Humans | Becoming Ourselves (Paleolithic)
From the earliest bipedal ancestors to the dawn of spiritual awareness, we delve into the archaeological, anthropological, and theological questions surrounding our shared past. Join us over two episodes as we uncover the blurred lines bet…
- 187. Francis Collins & Kristine Torjesen | Science is Good
Francis Collins, founder of BioLogos, and Kristine Torjesen, the new President and CEO, are deeply invested in the power of science to do good in the world. Yet, they observe with concern a growing distrust in science within our technologi…
- 134. Mónica Guzmán | The Gift of Curiosity
In a world of increasing division, Monica Guzman 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…
- 186. Alan Lightman | Falling into Infinity
Alan Lightman is a theoretical physicist and has always seen the world as a place governed by unbreakable laws. But those laws never did a very good job explaining some of the most important moments of his life, moments when he felt a prof…
- 185. Science and the Resurrection Accounts
How do science-minded Christians make sense of the resurrection? This Easter season, Jim Stump tackles that question. After hearing the Gospel accounts read by listeners and staff, he examines some of the differences in the Biblical accoun…
- 184. Kipuka to Kipuka | Islands of Life, Faith and Restoration
Life has a way of persisting through ecological disturbance in small protected places and then radiating outward. In Hawaii, those places are called “kipukas.” But biological life is not the only thing that can grow and thrive in the refug…
- 183. Cool Creatures | Giant Pacific Octopus
The giant Pacific octopus and humans have been evolving separately for more than 500 million years, but still, we have a few things in common. We explore what this means about octopuses, what it means about humans, and what it tells us abo…
- 99. Heino Falcke | The Hidden World Above
From stargazing as a child to helping lead the team which took the first ever image of a black hole, Heino Falcke has only seen his faith and his work as an astronomer as deeply connected. In this episode we talk about his book, Light in t…
- 182. Christian Climate Observers | Stories from COP29 & Around the World
In the fall of 2024 198 countries from around the world came together in Azerbaijan, at COP29, to try and find solutions to the climate crisis. While the policy outcomes were disappointing, the stories of people from around the world were…
- BONUS | So This is Christmas
A reflection on what it means to cultivate joy even if you don't feel very merry. Theme song and credits music by Breakmaster Cylinder. Other music in this episode by Titan Sound, Vesper Tapes and Glory House, courtesy of Shutterstock, Inc…
- BONUS | Live from COP29
Jim and Colin report on location from Baku, Azerbaijan where they are attending COP29, the United Nations Climate Change conference. In this bonus episode, they briefly describe what COP29 is, why they are there, share a few stories of the…
- 181. Norman Wirzba | Textures of Hope
Hope has sometimes been made out to be something we possess, something we hold like a shield to protect us from pain. But Norman wants to recast hope as something we do, and most importantly, as something that is animated by love. He talks…
- 180. Hans Madueme | A Better Way to Disagree
Hans Madueme is a Young-Earth Creationist. In this conversation, the goal was not to come to an agreement about the age of the earth but instead to understand one another better, find common ground, and explore the points of disagreement w…
- 179. Francis Collins | Truth, Science, Faith, Trust
After many years working at the very top levels of science and medicine, pursuing knowledge that would lead to better and healthier lives for so many people, Francis Collins started to see an erosion of trust in science, as well as across…
- 178. Brian McLaren | Showing Up in the Face of Doom
The title of Brian McLaren’s new book, Life After Doom , might at first be imposing…that word, “doom" looms large, but there is also life. McLaren has been looking into the face of the climate crisis and has, himself, felt the sense of doo…
- 177. Extinction | You Can't Love What You Don't Know
It is hard to care for, protect, or even to mourn those we have no relationship with. We try to develop a relationship with a few creatures that are still among us, even if they are imperiled, to better know and love our world. And we end…
- 176. Extinction | Will There Be Wild Things Out There?
We look to present times to see how extinctions are actually happening and what we know about them and we explore the work of biological conservation to protect species. Then we return to the question of how to feel about extinction, compa…
- 175. Extinction | Creatures Here and Gone
Extinction is a familiar idea for almost everyone, but it wasn’t long ago that no one would have thought a species could go out of existence. We explore this history of the human understanding of extinction, and then we go much further bac…
- 174. From Play to Purpose | How Culture and Faith Made and Make Us Human
The story of evolution is often centered around genes and randomness. More and more, scientists are finding that culture is also a driver of evolution. When we explore how humans have both emerged from an evolutionary process and contribut…
- 143. The Ocean Declares | Horseshoe Crabs, Hospitality & Creatureliness
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 Chris…
- 173. Creation Groans | Living with Grief, Living with Hope
The climate crisis often leads people to feelings of grief, despair, and fear. With the of help faith leaders, climate activists, artists and teachers from around the world we explore some of the emotions that result from an awareness of t…
- 132. Neuroscience, Mental Health and the Church
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 episo…
- 172. Camille Dungy | Dandelions and Bindweed
Camille Dungy is a poet, and it is with a poet’s close attention that she reflects on the interactions between humans and the greater-than-human world. In the conversation, Camille talks about how she came to her connection to the greater-…
- 171. Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire & Francis Collins | Live from Faith and Science 2024
Francis Collins and Kizzmekia Corbett-Helaire are both renowned scientists and both of them played special and important roles during the pandemic. In this conversation, the two of them remember some of the key moments in the scientific de…
- 170. The Sacred Chain | The Challenge of Pain and Suffering
The science of evolution has caused friction for many Christians. And science does pose some challenges to the way people have been taught to think about their faith, but those challenges don’t have to lead to a decision to reject faith—or…
- 169. The Sacred Chain | The Challenge of Time
The science of evolution has caused friction for many Christians. And science does pose some challenges to the way people have been taught to think about their faith, but those challenges don’t have to lead to a decision to reject faith—or…
- 168. The Sacred Chain | The Challenge of the Bible
The science of evolution has caused friction for many Christians. And science does pose some challenges to the way people have been taught to think about their faith, but those challenges don’t have to lead to a decision to reject faith—or…