Matters of Life and Death

Embryology 1: A stem cell ‘Mini Me’, CRISPR, Brave New World, and extending the 14-day limit

There has been a flood of highly significant if poorly reported developments in embryo research in recent years, all of which raise new and confusing questions for Christians and non-Christians alike. Is it acceptable to use stem cells to create embryo-like structures to research on? Should we ban all efforts to perfect gene editing, even if that stops us effectively eradicating some horrible conditions? And would it be wise to extend the current rules on embryo research to let scientists go further in the lab, as many would like? Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, visit John's website: http://www.johnwyatt.com For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com

Evolution 2: Tracking coronavirus variants, the immorality of mutation, roughly one thousand hominids, and intelligent uncertainty

Our second episode on the evolution debate considers three more bones of contention: where do different species come from? Are we all commonly descended from a single source, or does God intervene? Then we consider homo sapiens, and whether science supports the Genesis account of humankind having an original Adam and Eve couple. Lastly we look at the Fall, and question if this can be seen as a real event in space and time, or instead has evolutionary biology proven death, predation and suffering were baked into creation long before human beings chose to sin. Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, visit John's website: http://www.johnwyatt.com For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com

The Queen: Monarchy as service, astonishing the President of Ireland, the changing Christmas Speech, and a testimonial faith

In this special one-off episode, Tim speaks with Mark Greene from the London Institute for Contemporary Christianity about Queen Elizabeth II, her faith and decades of service. We consider her own particularly Biblical vision for how constitutional monarchy should work in post-war and post-Imperial Britain, and we explore how her deeply-held Christian faith shaped a lifetime of service. How did this mostly silent figurehead become the most admired public Christian in Britain and quietly expound the gospel year after year in an increasingly secular country? You can find out more about Mark’s book, The Servant Queen and the King She Serves, here – https://licc.org.uk/ourresources/the-queens-faith/ Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, visit John's website: http://www.johnwyatt.com For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com

Evolution 1: Finding common ground, the cosmic watchmaker, interpreting Genesis, and a 6,000-year-old Earth?

Evolution vs creationism. It's been one of the most divisive and contentious debates within Christianity. But is there a way to tackle these questions without falling into rancour and accusation? In this episode we tentatively attempt just that, exploring first what we can all agree on about God as Creator, and then looking through five big areas of disagreement. Can we sustain the idea the universe is only 6,000 years old in the 21st century? And should Christians reject scientists' insistence all species were originally descended from a common ancestor, including humans? Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, visit John's website: http://www.johnwyatt.com For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com

Archie Battersbee 2: Doubts over the brain scans, the end of ‘doctor knows best’, sucked into the culture wars and protective power of attorney

Archie’s case underlines the growing crisis over the lack of trust many ordinary people have in medical professionals. Nobody wants to go back to absolute deference to doctors, but is there an alternative to furious hostility and judges having to rule on care decisions? Doctors and patients also need to wrestle with a new participant in these vexed and fraught conflicts – the public, newly involved in these cases via social media and online campaigns. But is it helping to have activists turning these unique and tragic stories of deeply sick children into grist for the culture war mill? For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, find more resources to read, listen to and watch at John’s website: http://www.johnwyatt.com Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173

Archie Battersbee 1: The invention of ‘brain death’, a breakdown in trust, the child’s best interests, and how to turn off life support

Twelve-year-old Archie Battersbee died on 7 August, after months of legal wrangling between doctors who believed he was brain dead and wished to end life support, and his family who resisted this. This tragic case has captured a lot of media attention, and in this episode we try to unpick some of the complicated medical and ethical challenges thrown up by the story. Why is it so much harder today than in the past to actually determine if a person has died? How can, and should, the courts overrule the wishes of a child’s parents regarding medical treatment (or its withdrawal)? And can Christians be pro-life and anti-euthanasia, while still supporting the doctors’ wish to allow Archie to die? For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, find more resources to read, listen to and watch at John’s website: http://www.johnwyatt.com Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173

Genetics 2: Whole genome sequencing, Gattaca, de-identification versus anonymity, and Big Data Towers of Babel

In this episode we pick up our conversation with clinical geneticist Melody Redman to talk about a new NHS programme in England which is piloting whole genome sequencing of newborn babies. Why are scientists and doctors interested in collecting a child’s entire set of genes and storing them for the rest of their life? What medical benefits might result from this, and what ethical challenges does it throw up? Just because we can now do this, should we? We also consider some of the risks of our increasingly geneticised world and how as Christians we can hold onto our identity in Christ rather than lapsing into genetic determinism. Find out more about the Newborn Genomes Programme here - https://www.genomicsengland.co.uk/initiatives/newborns The group Unique helps support people and families affected by rare chromosomal and genetic disorders - https://rarechromo.org/ Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 

Genetics 1: Rare diseases, libraries of recipe books, BRCA1, and precision medicine

Each of us carries around in our cells about 20,000 different genes – a unique set of biological code which shapes how our bodies develop. As scientists better understand genes and how they work, genetics is becoming a more and more important field of modern medicine, particularly in diagnosing conditions. But this comes with a brand new set of ethical challenges to think through. In this episode, we interview Melody Redman, a clinical geneticist working in the NHS, about her work, and her perspective on it as a Christian doctor. For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, find more resources to read, listen to and watch at John’s website: http://www.johnwyatt.com Subscribe to the Matters Of Life And Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173  

Suffering 2: Rediscovering lament, reciting psalms in bomb shelters, the Gethsemane prayer, and the realism of Christian hope

Resuming our conversation about suffering, we think through some faithful Christian responses to evil and loss. How can the church reintegrate the deeply Biblical tradition of lament into its corporate and individual life, picking up on the psalms and ultimately Jesus on the cross? And what might a resilient and hope-filled fellowship of believers look like in the light of this?   For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com  If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, find more resources to read, listen to and watch at John’s website: http://www.johnwyatt.com  Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173 

Suffering 1: ’Adamah’, mystery and presence, the ever-smiling Buddha, and the lamb slain from the creation of the world

The problem of suffering has been one of the most intractable and painful theological debates for centuries. But is it perhaps not a problem to be solved, but a deeper mystery to be journeyed through? Is suffering solely a consequence of human sin since the Fall, or were we made to be fragile, dependent and broken? And how does knowing Jesus's death and resurrection are not simply a response to pain but God's Plan A from the start change things?  For more resources to help you explore faith and the big questions, visit: http://www.premierunbelievable.com  If you want to go deeper into some of the topics we discuss, find more resources to read, listen to and watch at John’s website: http://www.johnwyatt.com  Subscribe to the Matters of Life and Death podcast: https://pod.link/1509923173