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Stars, Cells, and God | Biological Basis for Belief? and Woke at the University
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Join Fazale “Fuz” Rana and Jeff Zweerink as they discuss new discoveries taking place at the frontiers of science that have theological and philosophical implications, including the reality of God’s existence.
Biological Basis for Belief?
As human beings, our religious nature defines us. Treating it as a scientific question, many scientists wonder, how do we account for human spirituality and religiosity? Are there brain structures and processes that explain this behavior? Using lesion mapping, a research team from Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital recently determined the brain regions and neural circuits that account for religiosity and spirituality.
This study (amongst others) raises troubling questions for Christians.
Is our spirituality and response to religion based on our brain’s biology?
Is there a materialistic, mechanistic explanation for religious acceptance?
Do people really experience God?
In this episode, biochemist Fuz Rana addresses these questions and presents a model that accommodates these scientific findings, while retaining a biblical view of human nature.
Woke at the University
During the 2023–2024 academic year, Rice University offered a course called “Afrochemistry” that claimed to “apply chemical tools and analysis to understand Black life in the US.” From January 16 to May 16, 2024, AcademicJobsOnline.org advertised a job for the University of Victoria’s physics and astronomy department that was only open to an indigenous person. Both examples show how a worldview subversive to the scientific enterprise is spreading into the scientific community. This view of contemporary critical theory sees the world in terms of oppressors and oppressed. In contrast, the Judeo-Christian worldview sees all people as valuable and worthy of God’s and our love. Additionally, the Judeo-Christian worldview buttresses and supports the foundation needed for the scientific enterprise to flourish.
YOUTUBE LINKS:
Michael A. Ferguson et al., “A Neural Circuit for Spirituality and Religiosity Derived from Patients with Brain Lesions,” https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34454698/
Additional Resources
Fazale Rana, “Is There a Biological Basis for Belief?,” https://reasons.org/explore/publications/articles/is-there-a-biological-basis-for-belief
Fazale Rana, “Is There a Biological Basis for Belief? A Follow Up,”
https://reasons.org/explore/publications/articles/is-there-a-biological-basis-for-belief-a-follow-up
Fazale Rana, “Does Oxytocin Cause Spiritual Experiences?,”
https://reasons.org/explore/blogs/the-cells-design/does-oxytocin-cause-spiritual-experiences
PODCAST LINKS:
University of Victoria, Department of Physics and Astronomy
New ‘Afrochemistry’ Course Widely Panned as Identity Politics Dumbing Down Hard Sciences
YOUTUBE LINKS:
AcademicJobsOnline, “University of Victoria, Department of Physics and Astronomy,” posted January 16, 2024, https://academicjobsonline.org/ajo/jobs/27010
Jennifer Kabbany, “New ‘Afrochemistry’ Course Widely Panned as Identity Politics Dumbing Down Hard Sciences,” https://www.thecollegefix.com/new-afrochemistry-course-widely-panned-as-identity-politics-dumbing-down-hard-sciences/
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