Wonders of the Living World

Curiosity, awe, and the meaning of life

Topics

Surprised by Meaning

As we step back and take in the big picture, our sense of wonder in discovery can turn to awe as we observe the scale and complexity of the living world. Doe the living world have anything to say about God?

News & Articles

Alister McGrath – exploring the landscape

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Exploring the question of purpose in biology

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Faithful to Scripture, Faithful to Science: Alister McGrath on science and Christian faith

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Guest Post: Conversation Piece

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Book Preview: Is There Purpose in Biology? The cost of existence and the God of love

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Purposeful Life – goal-oriented organisms and faith in the Creator

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Real Science: Untimely Deaths, the Necessity of Hope, and Struggles with Tin Openers

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Which came first, science or religion?

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The Purposeful Squirrel: Can organisms act with intention?

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The Atom and the Atonement: Why we need models in science and theology

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Between Science and Theology: How science learns about unobservable entities

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Part 1: The Parable of the Arch and the Stone

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Part 2: The Arch, the Stone and the Structure of Science

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Panopticon

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If science is the answer, what are the questions?

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Videos

Alister McGrath: How can a feeling of awe and wonder in science prompt people to ask questions that science can’t answer?

5th May 2021

Alister shares his most vivid experience of wonder while on vacation in…

Alister McGrath: Does the natural world have any value in and of itself?

5th May 2021

This is an area where Christianity has a lot to say. It…

Alister McGrath: Suffering, and our sense that things should be better

5th May 2021

Alister speaks about suffering in our world and people's concerns about how…

Alister McGrath: Why do you think a faithful interpretation of scripture can also be faithful to science?

5th May 2021

Alister holds this position because it seems to fit best with what…

Alister McGrath: What can we learn about God from science?

14th June 2021

Thinking of theology as lens, as C.S. Lewis did, brings things into…

Alister McGrath: What made you switch from science to theology?

26th August 2021

Alister had an atheistic worldview before University. His studies then raised questions…

Alister McGrath: What has helped you to appreciate the wonders of the living world?

3rd November 2021

Alister reflects on the type of awe that can be provoked by…

Hilary Marlow: How do you think science and faith fit together?

7th February 2022

For Hilary, science and faith are looking at the same reality from…

Margaret Miller: Can we use the language of purpose in biology?

7th February 2022

Some of the purposes that coral reef ecosystems play are that they…

Alister McGrath: Can we speak of purpose in biology?

7th February 2022

Biologists tend to be tentative about the language of purpose because it…

Stephen Freeland: What questions about meaning and purpose does your work make you ask, and how does your faith help you answer them?

7th February 2022

In recent years, astrobiology has redefined our relationship to the cosmos. It…