Good News for Armagh: Recent Episodes
John Hewitt
This is a podcast that asks the 'Big Questions' of the Universe and our Hearts. Questions of Origins, Life and Death, Morality and God. 'Where do we fit in?' and 'is there any meaning in this world?' Listen, discover and believe.
What is the value of history and what does history say about Patrick. What is his legacy to us today?
Dr Crawford Gribben
He is a historian of early modern religion, and the author of books including most recently The rise and fall of Christian Ireland (Oxford University Press, 2021).He has held posts in early modern literature and history at the University of Manchester (2004-2007) and Trinity College Dublin (2000-2004, 2007-2012). After taking up a position at Queen's (2013), he acted as head of the School of History and Anthropology (2015-16) and as Queen's director of the AHRC Northern Bridge PhD programme (2017-2020).
Books by Crawford:
-J. N. Darby and the birth of dispensationalism (in preparation).
-The rise and fall of Christian Ireland (Oxford University Press, 2021).
-Survival and resistance in evangelical America: Christian Reconstruction in the Pacific Northwest (Oxford University Press, 2021).
-An introduction to John Owen (Crossway, 2020), translated into Portuguese as John Owen: Uma visão cristã para cada fase da vida (Rio de Janiero: Pro Nobis Editora, 2021).
-John Owen and English Puritanism: Experiences of defeat (Oxford University Press, 2016)
-Evangelical millennialism in the trans-Atlantic world, 1500-2000 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2011)
-Writing the rapture: Prophecy fiction in evangelical America (Oxford University Press, 2009)
-God's Irishmen: Theological debates in Cromwellian Ireland (Oxford University Press, 2007)
-The puritan millennium: Literature and theology, 1550-1682 (Four Courts, 2000)
This is a discussion on the fine tuning of the universe with John Hewitt and Dr Luke Barnes.
Luke A. Barnes is a lecturer in physics at Western Sydney University, with a Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Cambridge. The focus of his research has been the cosmic evolution of matter, and he has published papers in the field of galaxy formation and evolution, and on the fine-tuning of the universe for life. He is the coauthor with Prof. Geraint Lewis of "A Fortunate Universe: Life in a Finely-Tuned Cosmos" and "The Cosmic Revolutionary's Handbook", both published by Cambridge University Press. He has published papers in the philosophy of science and the philosophy of religion, and is an accomplished public speaker.
Books:
A Fortunate Universe:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Fortunate-Universe-Finely-Tuned-Cosmos/dp/110874740X/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1YWAJH4YDMRYV&keywords=fortunate+universe&qid=1651155122&s=instant-video&sprefix=fortunate+universe%2Cinstant-video%2C670&sr=1-1-catcorr
The Cosmic Revolutionary's Handbook: (Or: How to Beat the Big Bang):
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1108486703/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&pd_rd_i=1108486703&pd_rd_w=xuCmq&pf_rd_p=828203ef-618e-4303-a028-460d6b615038&pd_rd_wg=IBBX0&pf_rd_r=96AN8FSS5HPN87WWCHQ9&pd_rd_r=fb8d6d6f-9e4e-4337-b260-0959ff49f6ef&s=instant-video&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFTSVA1SzBGNVYyR04mZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAwNzgwODFET1RCUk1HWUc0SVAmZW5jcnlwdGVkQWRJZD1BMDk3Nzc4NDM1Vk9PUzcyUFFWNjUmd2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9kZXRhaWwmYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl
Papers:
A Reasonable Little Question
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/e/ergo/12405314.0006.042/--reasonable-little-question-a-formulation-of-the-fine-tuning?rgn=main;view=fulltext
Fine-Tuning in the Context of Bayesian Theory Testing
https://arxiv.org/pdf/1707.03965.pdf
Listen to GN4A Podcast on the Fine tuning of the universe by John Hewitt.
https://open.spotify.com/episode/4ImpeYrksFKAREQlxbmP2E
Christianity is not some old guy sitting in the corner, always grumpy and just pointing out what is wrong with the world, never rolling up his sleeves to give positive answers. No, it has a response. And not just to the questions of how this universe came to be, but to the deeper level of WHY it came to be. As we will see today, Genesis 1 not only satisfies our heads with answers, but it responds to our hearts with wisdom. If you have ever thought about the why questions, this is for you today. Failte go Good News for Armagh, the podcast that looks at the questions of the universe and our hearts.
At times we can be very good at picking out problems but having no answers and maybe thus far this is what you think I have been doing. Christianity is not some old guy sitting in the corner, always grumpy and just pointing out what is wrong with the world, never rolling up his sleeves to give positive answers. No, it has a response. It has an origin story that although difficult to understand in all it’s details and imagery, helps us navigate our beginnings and this is what we are going to look at in this episode today. So if you have ever had questions or criticisms about Genesis 1, this is for you today. Failte go Good News for Armagh, the podcast that looks at the big questions of the universe and our hearts.
How can a person believe in God but yet be scientific? Hasn’t science pushed out God? Does being a Christian bring us back to the dark ages of scientific understanding? If you’re interested in these questions, keep listening for this is what we will be thinking about today. Failte go Good News for Armagh, the podcast that thinks about the big questions of the universe and our hearts.
We have a fine-tuned universe, a ‘Rare Earth’ and a privileged planet, but this is only a fraction of the ingredients needed for life. Paul Davies reminds us that we must take this further as he says there are two basic requirements for complex life. The first is an earth-like planet, that we have looked at, but the second is the genesis of life. Professor Paul Davies in his book ‘The Eerie Silence’ says
‘the fact that a planet is habitable, is not the same as saying it is inhabited… .
The deeper, infinitely greater challenge is the origin of complex life. That is the subject of our Podcast today, the complex cell.
Failte go good news for Armagh. The Podcast that looks at big questions of the universe and our hearts.
Our world is wonderful. From its simple flowers that for whatever reason cheer us to its complex systems and cycles that baffle us; from its powerful Volcanos that leave us in fear and awe to its gentle breeze and sunshine that soothe us; from its seasons and changes that bring us variety, to its constant motion around our sun that brings us stability. To think of our Earth, to think of our solar system to think of the Milky way itself, it is stunning. If you have ever thought about the complexities of this world or thought through its exactness and precision, then this one is for you today. We are going to think about our privileged planet. Failte go Good News for Armagh.
We are here by chance, aren't we? The universe is fine-tuned, this is the fact, but why is it so tuned? Does this mean there is a fine-tuner?