Good Heavens! The Human Side of Astronomy

A Conversation with Dr. Luke Barnes

On this episode of Good Heavens! a fun and insightful conversation with Dr. Luke Barnes about the history of cosmology and astronomy over the last hundred years. We discuss the remarkable and unexpected discoveries about the universe since the early 20th century from the idea of an expanding universe to the hair-raising idea that our universe actually had a beginning.  Sir Fred Hoyle believed that a scientist would risk his entire career if he pressed the idea that God had anything to do with the cosmos. So how does the history of cosmology point to God? What should we think about God in contemporary cosmology today? Come and see, on this episode of Good Heavens! 

Follow Luke on Twitter @lukebarnesastro and on his blog https://letterstonature.wordpress.com/luke/ as well as his appearances on the video series Closer to Truth https://www.closertotruth.com/contributor/luke-barnes/profile 

Be sure to check out Luke's delightful and down-to-earth YouTube channel about cosmology with his colleague Geraint Lewis.  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnPhuVSN3-gEeeSMyIMeDeA

 

Can We Still Believe the Bible? A Conversation With Dr. Craig Blomberg

You have probably had a non-Christian friend, coworker, someone in social media, or a family member ask you a difficult question or two about the Bible. Isn't it full of contradictions? How can you believe that stuff? Miracles? What about all those translations? Science has disproved the Bible, and what about all the errors and mistakes it contains? The Bible is simply unbelievable. 

Not at all. There are no new criticisms under the sun of the Word of God. It has survived the test of time and any objection to its trustworthiness, inerrancy, reliability, and inspiration have been answered. 

But the questions will continue and we must be ready to give a defense. 

In this special episode of Good Heavens, Dan chats with Bible scholar Dr. Craig Blomberg about his very accessible and helpful book Can We Still Believe the Bible? An Evangelical Engagement with Contemporary Questions. It's a great book for anyone with questions about the Bible's trustworthiness, how to properly understand its construction, how to understand the world of translations, and how to answer many of the questions non-believers ask and the objections they raise regarding the construction, compilation, and canonization of the Scriptures.  

The Uniqueness of Earth with Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez

Is the Earth a typical planet? Is our Sun just a humdrum, mediocre star? Is our solar system common in the universe? Are there other Earth-like planets out there? Is there life in the cosmos beyond life on Earth? Come and listen to a down-to-Earth conversation with astrobiologist and astronomy professor Dr. Guillermo Gonzalez, co-author of The Privileged Planet and one of the contributors to The Story of the Cosmos. Dr. G breaks down just how unique our planet is in the cosmos and how it all points to the glory of God in Christ. 

Image credit: NASA Earth Observatory/Joshua Stevens & NOAA.

A Conversation with Sasha Sagan

An informal chat with Sasha Sagan, the daughter of the late Dr. Carl Sagan. Dan talks with her about her new book, her iconic father, her Jewish roots, and her quest as a new mother to find meaning, purpose, and tradition in the universe, without belief in God. This recording was done in conjunction with Watchman.org and the Atheist and Christian Book Club for the November 2019 meeting where the group discusses Dr. Sagan's book Pale Blue Dot. This conversation was more to get to hear Sasha's stories and learn about her experiences rather than to debate the existence of God. We hope you enjoy it.

To find out more about the Atheist and Christian book club, see https://atheistchristianbookclub.com/

The Works of His Hands with Dr. Sy Garte

On this episode of Good Heavens! Dan talks with biochemist and former atheist Dr. Sy Garte about his new book about his personal journey from atheism to Jesus and some of the glorious wonders in the chemistry of biological life. It is a rich and heartwarming tale of science and faith and how the hand of God brought the heart of Sy gently to His side. From Boston to biochemistry to the Big Bang, Blue whales and the Bible, Sy's book is worth a read. So come along and meet Sy and hear his story on this episode of Good Heavens! 

Find out more about The Works of His Hands! 

Arp! What Light Through Yonder Telescope Breaks?

The strange and wonderful world of galaxies, part II. Come along with Wayne and Dan as they take a quick ride through some fantastical stuff about galaxies, including some hair-raising facts about our own! Seems as though the more we discover, the less we know what the universe is really like! 

Come and see! 

Galaxy pair - NGC 4676 - NASA/ESA/STScI/Hubble

The Solar Eclipse of 2017

This was the very first episode of Good Heavens!  We've been saving it for Podbean listeners.  Wayne and Dan explore all the excitement, wonder and meaning behind the phenomenal American solar eclipse of August 21, 2017! Come see how the eclipse brought people together and how it still amazes. 

 

Good Heavens - It's been two years!

This program is a short announcement about a special podcast coming soon.  We would like to thank everyone who is listening to the Good Heavens podcast!  This short program tells about the beginning of the Good Heavens program in 2017.  We've been saving the first podcast for a time like this.  September 2019 is the two year anniversary of Good Heavens.  The first podcast was about the solar eclipse of 2017.  So, very soon we are making available the program on eclipse of 2017 to celebrate two years of Good Heavens!  

Again, thank you to everyone out there listening and telling others about the program!

Music credit for the background goes to https://www.fesliyanstudios.com/

Re-enchanting the Universe with Dr. Paul M. Gould

On this apologetics-focused episode of Good Heavens! Dan talks with Christian philosopher Dr. Paul M. Gould about his latest books, Cultural Apologetics and The Story of the Cosmos.  They both speak to our culture of fragmentation, disenchantment and pragmatism. Paul presents us with a renewed Gospel vision of hope and wonder, beauty and truth, in the midst of our disillusionment. 

Dr. Gould inspires us to renew our commitment as believers to read both creation and Scripture with great care and utilize them creatively, imaginatively and wisely in engaging our culture for the glory of God. 

 

Find out more about Paul's work by visiting his blog, http://www.paul-gould.com/

Look for his book on Amazon: Cultural Apologetics: Renewing the Christian Voice, Conscience, and Imagination in a Disenchanted World

Also look for our book on Amazon:  The Story of the Cosmos: How the Heavens Declare the Glory of God

Galactic Wonders Part 1

Galaxies are the chandeliers of our universe. They come in all kinds of shapes, sizes, colors and styles, and hang from the vault of the heavens reminding us of God's glory. Our knowledge of them today is less than a century old. But what exactly is a galaxy? How did they form? Why do we study them? Most importantly, how do they point to the glory of God? Join Wayne and Dan as they enjoy smoothies from their favorite coffee shop and chat about galaxies in a way that is down-to-earth and accessible for everyone! 

For more on galaxies including some pictures check out Wayne's blog here!  

Apologetics in the Cosmos with Joel Settecase

This episode features Dan being interviewed as a guest on the podcast of Joel Settecase of The Think Institute in Chicago.  https://thethink.institute/ . Dan and Joel discuss The Story of the Cosmos book and apologetics and how the can help us refocus and renew our minds of thinking more holistically about engaging the culture with the Christian Gospel. 

This is the first in a series on apologetics from Good Heavens! In addition to Wayne and Dan talking about cosmological and astronomical topics, we will also feature some episodes on apologetics with interviews from a variety of different people, authors, speakers, teachers, and pastors. 

Official Trailer for 'The Story of the Cosmos'

A treat for Podbean listeners - This is the official video trailer of The Story of the Cosmos book - How the Heavens Declare the Glory of God. Click here to watch this wonderful video on YouTube.

https://youtu.be/ODhGZOBGC4w

It's the fabulous work of Jason Jean of Right Now Media

If you like the trailer, find out more about the book at thestoryofthecosmos.com.

Jason's artistry. https://www.jasonjeanproductions.com/

Apollo 11 - 50 Years Later

Good Heavens! It's been 50 years since Apollo 11. July 16, 1969 the Apollo 11  launch took place. Join Wayne and Dan as they discuss the accomplishment of men setting foot on the Moon. How big was the Saturn V rocket? What was it like for the astronauts landing on the Moon? The whole world watched and listened to the Moon landing on TV and radio. What does the Bible say about the Moon that relates to Apollo 11?

July 16 also marks the release of the book The Story of the Cosmos, which Dan and Wayne both contributed to. To find out more, go to this link: https://thestoryofthecosmos.com

How Do We Know the Flood Happened?

Wayne and Dan take a look at how we can know the flood of Genesis was a real, historical event and a give brief history of geological history. 

Find out more about the flood from Wayne's blog here. 

Is Genesis History? mentioned near the end of the episode. 

This podcast is being reposted after accidental removal.

Some Stories Behind The Story of the Cosmos!

Come and have a listen to Wayne and Dan chat about a few fun and inspirational stories behind the book, The Story of the Cosmos! Hear how it all came together and how it all holds together. Dan talks about how the project began and Wayne shares a bit from his chapter plus a lot of other curious little tidbits about an encouraging and fresh look at how the heavens declare the glory of God. (Book release is July 16, 2019.)

The opinions and thoughts expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Harvest House or any of the other contributors in the book. This is just an informal & fun discussion between Wayne and Dan Good Heavens! style.

You can find out more about The Story of the Cosmos here!