Blessings and Rituals for the 21st century
People are choosing to bless babies and hold weddings and funerals without the church, in a way that seems less hypocritical, more celebratory and more in tune with their lives. How can the church...
Finding Paradise: The personal journey of a right-wing religious extremist
Hear the story of someone raised with Christian Zionist end-time theology and an ultra-literal interpretation of scripture. Someone who has been saved from a damaging theology, which was arrogant,...
First Steps Through The Menopause
A beginner's guide to the menopause: what it is, what to expect, and what help is available from conventional medicine, complementary therapies and self-help/lifestyle changes. First Steps Through...
Forgiveness, Justice and the elusive Quest for Reconciliation.
The wounds of history which result from war and conflict run deep. They feed and draw from the deep alienation at the heart of our fractured communities. Is there a better world where those who are...
Palestine/Israel: Moving from separation and exclusion to sharing and equality
Palestine/Israel is in desperate need of a bold vision that challenges a status quo shaped by ethno-religious exclusivity and exclusion. After facing hard facts about the reality on the ground, comes...
The Beauty in the Beast
Hugh Warwick once argued that the hedgehog was the most important creature on the planet but he was beset by others who claimed that their own particular species were just as significant. So began a...
The Blood of the Martyrs in the C21st
The wars of the new millennium have been matched with a rise in martyrdom around the globe. While most people view it as catastrophic, a growing number claim it has unique value. So what is...
Speaker(s): Dave TomlinsonWired Worship & Virtual Virtues
How do the internet and social media reflect our spiritual quest? How are they shaping us today? Can we uphold our desire to be moral people in a virtual world with less concrete consequences? How...
Speaker(s): Vicky BeechingDomesticating Monsters: Why the Church Doesn’t Need Missions
In the current state of missions the ‘other' has disappeared. Attempts to salvage the ideas behind missions have led to the end of distinction and ultimately the end of thinking through the...
Identities in Paradise
How we perceive ourselves and how others perceive us collectively changes constantly as we grow up among worlds. Is there room in paradise for multiple identities? Do we have to become who we are not...
Is Anything Private Anymore?
In the digital age, can we keep any secrets? We want to harness the information flow and see everything all the time, but what price will we pay for our obsessive curiosity? As well as hearing from...
Is there any hope for heathens?
One of the great promises of religion is hope. So does giving up God mean we also have to Malikgive that up? This talk will look at the different answers to this question within secular thought: from...
Making Sense of Videogames
Videogames offer new ways of telling our stories, but reviews suggest they are largely about entertainment and violence. Andy Robertson helps gamers and non-gamers make sense of the format, to find a...
Speaker(s): Andy RobertsonMeaning and Randomness: On Seeing Things That Are Not There
Our brains have evolved to make quick decisions that are right most of the time as opposed to slower, more reflective, decisions that are right slightly more often. They are optimised for biological...
Failure is not an option
We live in one of the wealthiest countries in the world and in the most affluent time in history. The mantra's of the era are ‘opportunity for all' and ‘everyone can succeed'. Failure is...
Speaker(s): Lucy Winkett