Shows
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFilmmaker Michael Ray Lewis Part 2 - Design in the Universe Helps Lead an Atheist to ChristThe Bible tells us that we can see and understand "God's invisible attributes" through what He has created. And this is precisely what former atheist Michael Ray Lewis discovered as he spent three years examining the evidence for Christianity. One of the most impressive arguments he encountered during his time of searching was that of the fine tuning of the universe.
Jesus eventually got hold of Michael and not long thereafter his wife encouraged him to make a documentary about the evidence he had uncovered for Christianity.
Here on part two of our conversation with...2025-06-0945 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyNews From Space! A New Segment for Good Heavens!Instead of just one topic, Wayne and Dan thought it would be fun to cover some current events in the heavens and call it "News from Space" for lack of a better segment title. On this episode they chat about astronauts stuck in space, some strange exoplanets, what it really means to be an "earth-like" planet, and there's even a black hole that shoots out a Death-Star like jet of plasma that seems to ignite supernovae!
And of course, how Wayne and Dan think it all points to the glory of God in Christ.
2024-10-141h 16
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Perseid Meteors THIS WEEKEND! (August 11th-14th)Be sure to catch the Perseid Meteor Shower this weekend (Aug. 12-13, 2023) , weather permitting! If the weather is bad or you can't see them, however, hopefully this episode will be the next best thing!
What is a meteor shower, anyway? What do they mean? Where can you see them? Wayne and Dan attempt to answer these and other burning questions about this weekend's Perseid fireworks! Come and see!
Wayne's article on comets.
Dan's article on the Perseids.
Previous Good Heavens! Episodes on Meteors and Comets
Meteors (Sept. 2021)
Come...2023-08-1154 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyIs There Life Out There? Part 2. A Conversation on Extraterrestrial Life with Dr. Jeff ZweerinkIf extraterrestrial life existed, how would it impact our faith in Christ? What would it look like? Would it be something like bacteria, plants or animals, or something more resembling intelligent agents like ourselves? Is the Earth specially designed to host biological life or are there other "Earth-like" planets in the universe today? This is part two of our special combined broadcast of Apologetics Profile and Good Heavens! with cosmologist and author Dr. Jeff Zweerink of Reasons to Believe. If you have friends or family interested in the question of extraterrestrial life, you don't want to miss this episode.2023-07-1841 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyIs There Life Out There? Part 1. A Conversation on Extraterrestrial Life with Dr. Jeff ZweerinkWe have been asking the question as long as we have been able to look up at the stars. Is there life out there in the cosmos? What would it be like? What are the implications for us if there is? And especially, how might extraterrestrial life impact our understanding of the Bible and of the Christian faith? What might extraterrestrial life have to do with Jesus of Nazareth? There is presently no evidence for ET. So why are we talking about it? Find out from an expert cosmologist who has asked this question himself. Dr. Jeff Zweerink of...2023-07-1751 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAmazing Exoplanets Part 2This is part two of our two-part episode on the wondrous world of exoplanets. On this episode Wayne and Dan explore a "super Saturn" with a ring system of over 110,000,000 million miles in diameter. If this planet were where our Saturn is located, we could easily see the rings with the naked eye. They would appear four to five times larger than the full moon!
We'll also be looking at the darkest, blackest exoplanet discovered to date. Just a tad larger than our own Jupiter, It has baffled astronomers ever since its discovery. No one really knows...2023-07-0340 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAmazing Exoplanets Part 1For the next two episodes of Good Heavens! Wayne and Dan will be exploring four fantastic worlds outside of our solar system. For the most part, there have been over 5,000 newly-discovered planets outside our own solar system since the 1990s, with thousands more "candidates" that need further exploration and confirmation.
Astronomers call these planets outside of our solar system "exoplanets."
On this episode we'll marvel at the mathematical majesty of TESS Object of Interest #178 or TOI-178 for short and we'll try to stay upright as we have a look at the wobbly but wondrous world of...2023-06-3049 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGood Heavens! Dwarf Planets?!Good Heavens! Dwarfs (not dwarves) have stolen Pluto's planetary status! Who are these mischievous entities? Why did they steal from Pluto? Where are they, exactly? And what do dwarfs, dancing, and astronomy have to do with each other?
Join Wayne and Dan for this educational adventure in exploring these recently discovered miscreants of the solar system! Hopefully they've answered all of the perplexing questions on this episode. If not, it's still a fun chat about what's out there and how it all points to the glory of God in Christ.
Easter episodes mentioned at the en...2023-04-121h 19
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyWonders Uncovered by the James Webb Space TelescopeDan summarizes four fantastical new images from the James Webb Space Telescope and how he believes they reveal the glory of God.
Objects discussed you can see for yourself!
Pandora's Cluster
VHS 1256 b (only an artist's conception)
Wolf-Rayet 124
NGC 7469 A Star Wreath
Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms. To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens. This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you...2023-03-3119 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Constellation of Draco the DragonDid dragons ever really exist? Why is there a constellation of a dragon? Where'd it come from?
On this episode of Good Heavens! Dan breaks down the myths and legends behind Draco the Dragon, the 8th largest constellation in the night sky, Find out about its brightest stars and some of the deep sky objects within and about what Scripture has to say about the dragon of old.
Don't miss this fascinating episode. Sit back, close your eyes, and imagine you're in a state-of-the-art planetarium. If you have some booming home audio surround sound or g...2023-03-1722 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAligned For God’s GlorySee a wondrous alignment of planets at the end of March! Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, Mars, and the Moon!
What does it all mean for us? Find out on this special episode!
Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms. To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens. This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at htt...2023-03-0921 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGood Heavens! A Grin Without a Cat! Part 2What made Alice swim in a puddle of tears?
Mathematics!
As long division did for Dan in 4th grade. Math can bring tears, both of frustration and joy. What exactly is math? Why does it work so well in describing our universe? How can people explain mathematics apart from mind? And what's it all have to do with a grin without a cat?
Come and see (or in this case, listen)!
For more grinning from the heavens, see Wayne's article!
https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2023/01/27/the-grin-from-space/
Dan's full inter...2023-02-0846 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGood Heavens! A Grin Without a Cat! - Part 1Have you ever seen a grin without a cat? Come and see, or at least listen to the story about a fascinating object in the deepest recesses of Ursa Major, the Great Bear!
Alice in Wonderland, Charlie Chaplain, Albert Einstein, invisible space-time fabric, and a grin that is kinda out of this world.
For more grinning from the heavens, see Wayne's article!
The Grin from Space
https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2023/01/27/the-grin-from-space/
Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms. To support Good Heav...2023-02-0149 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyJ.R.R. Tolkien - Part 2Part two of our discussion of the fascinating and inspiring life, imagination, and writing of Lord of the Rings author J.R.R. Tolkien includes the moral nature of Tolkien's Middle Earth landscapes, true heroism, and Earendel.
Wayne's essay on Tolkien's Fantasy World
https://creationanswers.net/goodies/Tolkien_FantasyWorldvsRealWorld.pdf
Some titles mentioned in the broadcast
https://www.amazon.com/J-R-R-Tolkien-4-Book-Boxed-Set/dp/0345538374/
https://www.amazon.com/Silmarillion-Illustrated-J-R-R-Tolkien/dp/0063280779/
https://www.amazon.com/J-R-R-Tolkien-Biography-Humphrey-Carpenter-ebook/dp/B00I7JFC7C/
https://www.amazon.com/Tolkiens-Modern-Reading-Middle-earth-Beyond/dp/1943243727/
ht...2022-12-2538 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyOur Special Place in the CosmosIf contemporary astrophysics and cosmology has demonstrated anything conclusively about the nature of our universe it is
(1) We have a very special and unique place here on earth to observe and learn more about the universe and
(2) It requires intelligent agents to create even the simplest models of our universe or other theoretical universes.
In short, despite what popularizers of science tell us, we are indeed significant in the cosmos and there is an intelligent being behind and beyond the cosmos. As Christians, we know that the Creator of the cosmos Himself came down to us in...2022-11-261h 22
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Biblical Book of Job - Part 2The book of Job in the Old Testament tells of a prosperous man who was very good who lost much of what he owned and had 10 children die in one day. Then he was struck with a terrible illness. The book includes lengthy discussions between Job and his friends and tells of the gnawing questions and frustration Job experienced. Job also contains the longest quoted passage of God speaking in the Bible, which ranges from high to low in creation.
How does the beauty and majesty of the heavens and of creation fit in with our sorrows, doubts...2022-11-0459 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Biblical Book of Job - Part 1The book of Job in the Old Testament tells of a prosperous man who was very good who lost much of what he owned and had 10 children die in one day. Then he was struck with a terrible illness. The book includes lengthy discussions between Job and his friends and tells of the gnawing questions and frustration Job experienced. Job also contains the longest quoted passage of God speaking in the Bible, which ranges from high to low in creation. Was Job a real person? What was God's answer to Job? What did his friends think of Job in his su...2022-10-281h 04
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomySee Jupiter and Meteor Showers Soon!A short episode about seeing Jupiter this Monday, September 26th and a little background about meteor showers you can see this fall and how you can enjoy these declarations of God's glory.
Meteor Shower Schedule Fall 2022
Image of Jupiter is from the James Webb Space Telescope (NASA/ESA/CSA).
Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms. To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens. This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you wo...2022-09-2518 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGod of the Big Bang - Part 3 with Dr. Leslie Wickman
When we see a math problem in a text book or on a chalk or dry-erase board, we assume (quite rightly) it was written there by an intelligent agent. But when physicists discover the universe to be filled with mathematical laws, the implications are not a little disquieting, especially if one does not believe God exists.
If God does not exist, from where do these laws come? Why is the universe intelligible? Why do our mathematics work so efficiently and elegantly in describing the universe?
Modern science has few answers. But since we have only ever...2022-08-2946 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyEvolution and Alien Life (Part 2)While the search for extraterrestrial intelligence outside of our planet and solar system has not turned up a single bit of evidence, since the mid 20th century, there has been an increasing number of people claiming to have been abducted by aliens. Are these abduction stories just the byproduct of watching too many science fiction shows? Is there life out there in the cosmos, intelligent aliens who have figured out interstellar travel and have come to Earth to abduct people? Are alien abduction stories just fantastical tales told by individuals simply seeking attention or is there really something to...2022-07-2549 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Tenth Man - (Part 2 of 5) A Conversation with Apollo Astronaut Charlie DukeIn celebration of the Fourth of July and as 2022 is the year of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 16 moon landing, Dan sits down for a conversation with Apollo 16 astronaut, the tenth man to walk upon the lunar surface, Charlie Duke.
Duke is a retired Air Force Brigadier General and the CAPCOM "voice" of Houston for the historic Apollo 11 mission to the moon in July of 1969.
It was such an honor and delight to speak with Charlie. It was like talking to family. His delight in telling his remarkable story is evident. We spoke about his t...2022-07-0616 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Tenth Man - (Part 1 of 5) A Conversation with Apollo Astronaut Charlie DukeIn celebration of the Fourth of July and as 2022 is the year of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 16 moon landing, Dan sits down for a conversation with Apollo 16 astronaut, the tenth man to walk upon the lunar surface, Charlie Duke.
Duke is a retired Air Force Brigadier General and the CAPCOM "voice" of Houston for the historic Apollo 11 mission to the moon in July of 1969.
We will be releasing this conversation in five parts in the coming week, so stay tuned!
It was such an honor and delight to speak with Charlie. It wa...2022-07-0525 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyEscaping the Beginning? Part Two with Astrophysicist Jeff ZweerinkThe best science of the universe seems strongly to suggest our universe did indeed have a beginning. Why are the best minds in astrophysics trying to create models of the universe without a beginning? Are these models anywhere close to explaining a beginningless universe?
As we heard last week, there is indeed an anti-supernatural bias in the sciences today against the idea of God having anything to do with our universe. The late Stephen Hawking, Lawrence Krauss, are just a few examples of cosmologists who have openly expressed their intent to explain the cosmos without reference to G...2022-06-1847 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyEscaping the Beginning? Part One with Astrophysicist Jeff ZweerinkMoses knew it long before any of the best minds in physics and cosmology knew it. And what did Moses know? That "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
Just a hundred years ago, the sciences of the heavens had stumbled across what appeared in the mathematical and observational data as evidence that our universe did in fact have a beginning.
But like Moses, philosophers and theologians of earlier centuries understood our universe to have had a beginning. But the burgeoning skepticism of the 18th-century Enlightenment philosophy led many to believe the un...2022-06-1142 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyDoes the Fine-Tuning Argument Disprove God’s Existence?A special edition of Good Heavens! There is a video version of this that will be available Friday (6-3-2022).
https://youtu.be/BIpyvSiUgZM
A theist wrote a 2017 article suggesting the fine-tuning argument is not evidence for God. We take a look at the basics of the fine-tuning argument, how it began, what it is, and why it remains a good argument, despite the article's conclusions.
Original article can be found here.
https://nautil.us/fine-tuning-does-not-imply-a-fine-tuner-10235/
Books mentioned in the broadcast.
Patrick Glynn God the Evidence
David Alcalde...2022-06-0419 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyExpect the Unexpected! Supernovae Part 2No one in the observatory on that increasingly foggy London evening had even imagined they were all about to be a part of an unexpected discovery of a supernova. But as students were munching away at their pizza, they decided to aim their telescope at a target near the Big Dipper
Boom. That's when they saw it.
You just never know. While most of us will likely never be the first to discover a supernova, if we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, there is no end to the surprises and wonders He can and wil...2022-05-1847 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomySupernovae and the Glory of God, Part 1God's fireworks! Stars that explode. What could be more exciting? What are supernovae? Why do stars explode? And how do such wonders point us to God's glory? Find out on the next two episodes of Good Heavens!
Wayne's article on supernovae.
https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2022/05/02/stellar-fireworks/
Some spectacular supernovae
What is a supernova?
https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/definition-what-is-a-supernova/
SN1987A (the views expressed in these articles do not necessarily reflect those of Watchman.org or Good Heavens)
https://www.sciencenews.org/article/30-year-anniversary-supernova-1987a
ht...2022-05-1049 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomySee Four Planets this Spring!From now through the beginning of June, you can see four planets closely aligned - Jupiter, Venus, Mars, and Saturn.
On this special episode, we give you some pointers about how you can see these celestial diadems just before sunrise and we offer some thoughts about how they remind us of God's glory.
One may not agree with Lewis's use of medieval symbol and pagan mythology as imaginative symbols pointing to Christ. We are not suggesting it is an appropriate apologetic approach for everyone. Certainly Christianity teaches the rejection of pagan idolatry in both the Ol...2022-04-2320 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Wonders of the WebbNo, we aren't talking about the Internet! But about the newly launched James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), now roaming about the heavens a million miles from planet Earth. It was launched Christmas morning, December 25, 2021 from a European spaceport in French Guiana, in South America.
A brand-new, ten-billion-dollar telescope venture, the James Webb Space Telescope is an infrared telescope and will be able to pick up some of the faintest light in the most distant regions of the cosmos. The James Webb telescope supercedes the Spitzer Space Telescope that went before it. Spitzer was also an Infrared telescope. Com...2022-04-011h 05
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Heavens - A Different View - with Dr. Danny FaulknerAs you know, we here at Good Heavens! can't stop talking about the heavens. So when a beautiful picture book comes out with the title The Heavens, how can we not talk about it!
The heavens declare the glory of God. They are His creation, attesting to His invisible attributes of faithfulness, wisdom, love, power, and glory.
Come and see the wonders of the heavens in a magnificent new pictorial book from astronomer Dr. Danny Faulkner of Answers in Genesis along with two backyard astrophotographers Glen Fountain and Jim Bonser (I mispronounced his name in th...2022-02-211h 24Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyChariots of the Gods? No.Spoiler Alert!
On this episode Wayne and Dan debunk the "ancient alien" idea!
What are some modern prejudices we hold about the ancient past? Were ancient people not as smart as we are? Did their civilizations require the intervention of highly advanced alien beings? Has modern scientific knowledge fully debunked the idea of God? Is God just a myth created out of the ignorance of our ancestors?
We tackle these questions and a lot more, including how belief in UFOs and aliens often does lead into the occult and cult-like practices and beliefs.
W...2022-02-071h 25Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe First Star - Are Modern Scientific Theories and Scripture Compatible?Was there a first star? If so, how did it form? Believe it or not, the secular material sciences have no real evidence to support theoretical models of how the first stars came to be or how the stars we see today came into existence.
How then should we as Christians best understand naturalist models of the cosmos that take no account for God's glory?
On this special episode of Good Heavens! Dan offers some reflections about the nature of scientific models and Christian theology.
Book mentioned by Dr. Emma Chapman
...2022-01-2238 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Star of Bethlehem - What Did the Magi See? Part 2This is a special combined Christmas episode with our sister podcast Apologetics Profile.
The wondrous gift is giv’n!
So God imparts to human hearts
the blessings of his heav’n.
No ear may hear his coming,
but in this world of sin,
where meek souls will receive him, still
the dear Christ enters in. How silently, how silently,
You have likely heard or sung these very lines over the course of the last few weeks. They are a verse from Philip Brooks' 1868 Christmas hymn O Little Town of Bethl...2021-12-2746 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyStars, Song, and the Incarnation - Christmas with Dr. Christina GeorgeThe ancient way of understanding creation included a harmonious relationship between man and the cosmos we inhabit. This included the wonderful notion of creation being able to “sing” and declare the glory and radiant praise of the One who created everything, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Music and song are as much an integral part of creation as are the air we breathe and the food we eat. But this enchanted and sacred way of understanding the cosmos is largely lost to our culture today. How might we recapture it?
On this special Christmas edition of Good...2021-12-231h 16Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Star of Bethlehem - What Did the Magi See? Part 1This is a special combined Christmas episode with our sister podcast Apologetics Profile.
When we think of stars today, the first thing that may often come to mind are celebrities, Hollywood stars. If one evening you found yourself underneath the glowing industrial-scale light pollution of Los Angeles, you're probably more likely to see a famous celebrity than any single star in the sky. We are more likely to follow celebrities nowadays than we are stars in the sky.
If you happen to be a professional or amateur astronomer, however, perhaps your interests lie in knowing wh...2021-12-2058 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Sun and the Glory of God - Part 2The sun is blinding and deadly (if we got too close to it) yet it is also life-giving and sustains the planets in their orbits. How can something so lethal to our existence also be so necessary for our existence?
The sun reminds us of God's attributes in this regard. God is holy and dwells in unapproachable light. No human being can look upon or be in the presence of God's unmitigated holiness and not perish. But God is also absolutely necessary for the existence of the universe, our solar system, our sun, and our very lives. W...2021-12-0542 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Sun and the Glory of God - Part 1How does our sun point us to the glory of God? It's massive! It would take 109 planet Earths to cover the 864,000-mile diameter of the sun. It's blinding, powerful, and according to modern science, the sun sits on an invisible, fireproof canvass of space-time fabric!
It is truly a wonder to behold. As long as man has lived and moved upon the Earth, humans have studied our nearest star, worshiped it, sweated underneath its heat, performed rituals by it, kept time with it, raised crops with it, and sent satellites and telescopes up into the heavens to o...2021-11-2747 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Beauty of the Pleiades!You may have mistaken them for the Little Dipper - a small little bluish-white cluster of stars that look like a cart, a plough, or to some even a question mark. It is the asterism (stars that are not a constellation but a smaller group of stars within a larger constellation) of Taurus the Bull, visible in the early fall mornings and clear wintry nights.
Poems, stories, songs and myths surround this beauteous gem of the night skies. A Japanese auto manufacturer even features them as their main logo. The nineteenth-century English poet Alfred Lloyd Tennyson penned th...2021-11-081h 04
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFractals - The Secret Code of Creation - Part 2 - with Dr. Jason LisleIf God does not exist, then why does the universe exist? Why is there something rather than nothing? Any naturalistic theory about the existence of our universe inevitably finds itself addressing the concepts of infinity and eternity. It's unavoidable. You cannot explain the existence of the cosmos without invoking eternality.
This is precisely the meaning of Romans 1:18-20. Through what God has made, all mankind has clearly seen God's invisible attributes, which would include His timeless and eternal nature.
Discovered in the late 1970s and early 80s, the mathematical universe of fractals known as the Man...2021-11-0136 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFractals - The Secret Code of Creation - Part 1 with Dr. Jason LisleIn the late 1970s and early 80s, mathematicians and computer engineers made a remarkable discovery. An entirely new universe of pure mathematics.
Not a computer glitch. Not human design. Not a fluke of nature. Not anything that could be explained by chance. But an infinite series of stunning fractal patterns and designs that came from computer calculations of a very simple equation.
Z squared plus C.
Plugging in different variables for Z, then substituting each answer back into the equation, the computers plotted out each answer on a graph. The results? Never-before scenes of brea...2021-10-2543 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyA Special Broadcast on Meteors with a younger WayneThis is a special extended broadcast of Good Heavens! featuring our very own Wayne Spencer (a BLAST from the past!). This is an excerpt from a message by Wayne about meteors from 1991. Wayne discusses the Arizona meteor crater and the Tunguska meteor explosion over Russia in 1908. A little something special for you, an extended bonus episode about our meteor series! Enjoy!
Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms. To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/good...2021-10-1815 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyHow Meteors Impact Us Today (Part 2)Barringer Meteor Crater in Arizona, just over 30 miles outside of Flagstaff.
What slammed into what is now part of the Arizona desert to make this giant three-quarter-mile-wide and some 600-feet-deep hole in the ground? Scientists believe the meteor was between 150 and 200 feet wide.
Earth is impacted routinely by meteors and micrometeors, tens of thousands of tons per year in fact, but thankfully a majority of these are no bigger than a sand grain or fine dust.
But once in a great while, KABOOM! The Earth gets blasted by a much larger meteor. There are...2021-10-0434 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyMeteors, Meteoroids, and Meteorites Oh My! Part1Shooting stars. Meteors. Bright flashing streaks of light zipping through the heavens!
They are a wonder and delight to all of us. If you've ever stood under the canopy of a pristine dark sky filled with stars and have seen even one meteor take you by surprise, you know the childlike delight that stirs the soul.
But what exactly are meteors? From where do they come? What exactly are we seeing? What's the difference between meteors, meteoroids, and meteorites? And how might these celestial messengers declare the glory of God?
Come along with Way...2021-09-2737 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGod and Cosmology with James Sinclair - Part 2This episode of Good Heavens! is part two of our conversation with physicist and author James Sinclair about God and cosmology. James has worked with Dr. William Lane Craig on a number of publications about cosmology and was integral in helping Dr. Craig and "team theism" prepare for this debate! It was a delightful and wide-ranging conversation centered around the 2014 debate between cosmologist and atheist Dr. Sean Carroll and Christian philosopher Dr. William Lane Craig.
On part one we talked about billionaires in space, science fiction, and Dr. Carroll's thoughts on theism in general. On part two Jame...2021-09-201h 13Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGod and Cosmology with James Sinclair - Part 1On this episode of Good Heavens! Dan sits down with physicist and author James Sinclair to discuss God and cosmology. James has worked with Dr. William Lane Craig on a number of publications about cosmology and was integral in helping Dr. Craig and "team theism" prepare for this debate!
It was a delightful and wide-ranging conversation centered around the 2014 debate between cosmologist and atheist Dr. Sean Carroll and Christian philosopher Dr. William Lane Craig. On part one we talk about billionaires in space, science fiction, and Dr. Carroll's thoughts on theism in general.
SPOILER ALERT! We...2021-09-131h 02
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyOur Fascination with Mars Part 2Mars has inspired more than just astronomers and scientists. Mars has had and continues to have a profound impact on our collective imaginations, influencing a musical composer, countless artists and writers!
What was God thinking when He made Mars? Why make such a world? How does Mars declare the glory of God?
Dan and Wayne explore Mars from the comfort and safety of their armchair rocket ships. Our armchairs cost much less than a rocket and are far more comfortable and safe. So come and continue the adventure exploring the little red dot that goes back...2021-09-0638 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyOur Fascination with Mars Part 1As long as we have been observing the heavens, we have known of the immortal wandering stars of Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn. What is it about these "planets" that fascinate us so? Why do we spend billions of dollars sending robotic probes and satellites to the surface of a distant, lifeless, and desert wilderness?
From the safety of our armchairs, Dan and Wayne discuss our fascination with the red planet, and the various space exploration missions to Mars from multiple nations. The name "Mars" is a reference to the god of war in ancient Greece. We...2021-08-3046 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFlood Stories (Part 2) from Native People of North & South AmericaThis is part five in our five-part series on the Genesis flood found in Genesis chapters six through nine. On this episode, we discuss the significance of the prevalence of these flood narratives for us today. They are more than just mythical tales. It cannot finally be mere coincidence that all of these stories share common elements found in the book of Genesis.
On our first episode we featured a Young-Earth perspective on the flood with Dr. Tim Clarey of the Institute for Creation Research here in Dallas, Texas. On parts two and three, we featured an i...2021-08-2350 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFlood Stories (Part 1) from Native People of North & South AmericaThis is part four in our five-part series on the Genesis flood found in Genesis chapters six through nine. On our first episode we featured a Young-Earth perspective on the flood with Dr. Tim Clarey of the Institute for Creation Research here in Dallas, Texas. On parts two and three, we featured an interview with Old-Earth creationist and astrophysicist Dr. Hugh Ross about his perspective on Noah's flood.
On parts three and four, we feature author Nick Liguori who has compiled an impressive and unique anthology of flood stories from indigenous people and tribes throughout North, Central, a...2021-08-1648 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyIn the Days of Noah - Part 2 Dr. Hugh Ross' View of the Genesis FloodOn this episode, we continue our conversation with astrophysicist Dr. Hugh Ross from Reasons to Believe, who holds to an "old-earth" view (4.5 billion years). Dr. Ross presents his understanding of the text of Scripture, the science, and how he sees Noah's flood mentioned in Genesis 6-9.
But most importantly, Dr. Ross models charity and grace towards those who hold to a young-earth view (6-10,000 years), recognizing the most important aspect of this discussion is not finally the science, but modeling civility, compassion, and the love of Christ.
We have also featured a "young-earth" view of the...2021-08-0934 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyIn the Days of Noah Part 1 - A Conversation with Hugh RossThe Bible tells us that in the last days, there will be mockers who will scoff at the idea of a biblical flood.
if you've ever talked to a skeptic or an unbeliever, you probably have experienced this mockery first-hand. You've been told there's no evidence for a flood, or that the Bible is just a mythical tale, and that while the story of Noah and the animals on the ark might be a cute Sunday school lesson on a felt board, no thoughtful adult takes it seriously.
On this episode, we talk to astrophysicist Dr...2021-08-0356 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyMyth Made Fact Part 2 with Louis MarkosWhen the Apostle Paul preached his sermon on Mars Hill to the Greek philosophers, he quoted from two Greek poets writing about Zeus, but he used the poem as a bridge to show the Athenians the truth about the risen Lord Jesus Christ. In speaking of the Gospel in Romans 10, Paul references Psalm 19. The proclamation of God's glory begins with the good news of creation.
And as we learned in part one, Dr. Markos argues Jesus Himself does what Paul did on Mars Hill when speaking to a group of curious Greek seekers, using those things which h...2021-07-2544 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyMyth Made Fact Part1 with Louis MarkosWhat would you say to someone who says Jesus was a myth? Is the Bible's message like myths and legends? What if it is like them? What are people looking for in myths?
Come listen as Dan and Dr. Markos discuss how the gospel is the fulfillment of the best myths. Dr. Louis Markos says that Christianity is the fulfillment of all the great myths of the past. Viewed this way, "myth" does not mean "falsehood," but rather a cultural narrative rooted in the truth of who we are as created in the image of God.
Lou...2021-07-1943 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyModern Geology and the Biblical Flood with Timothy ClareyThe Bible gives us a record of God's judging the evil and violence of man with a flood. Skeptics say modern geology proves the flood didn't happen. Christians affirm the reality of the flood but often become entangled in debate over whether or not the flood covered the entire world or just a local area in and around the ancient Near East.
Many Christians are also divided on the issue of how old the earth is. We explore this issue by looking at science and young-earth creationism. This episode begins an investigation of the biblical flood from a...2021-07-031h 22Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyWhat is the Glory of God? Discussion with Thomas Egger, Hebrew ScholarIn Psalm 19 we read that the heavens are telling of the glory of God. But what exactly does that mean? Is the glory of God just pretty lights in the sky or is it something much more than that?
Nations and people throughout human history have built monuments to the sun, moon and stars. Modern science and industry spends billions of dollars annually to uncover the secrets of the cosmos. The late planetary astronomer Carl Sagan said that the cosmos and the stars on a clear and cloudless night sky, far and away removed from the light p...2021-06-2155 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyVideo: Return of the God Hypothesis Part 2 with Stephen C. MeyerCharles Darwin published his influential book, The Origin of the Species in 1859. Today, evolution and natural selection remain the dominant scientific paradigms of our time regarding the development of biological life.
Many atheists and skeptics regard Darwin's ideas as having finally done away with the idea that life is the special creation of the God of the Bible.
Our guest this week, Dr. Stephen C. Meyer of the Discovery Institute in Seattle, Washington, and best-selling author of The Return of the God Hypothesis suggests the findings of contemporary biological sciences point in the opposite direction.2021-06-1531 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyReturn of the God Hypothesis Part 2 with Stephen C. MeyerCharles Darwin published his influential book, The Origin of the Species in 1859. Today, evolution and natural selection remain the dominant scientific paradigms of our time regarding the development of biological life.
Many atheists and skeptics regard Darwin's ideas as having finally done away with the idea that life is the special creation of the God of the Bible.
Our guest this week, Dr. Stephen C. Meyer of the Discovery Institute in Seattle, Washington, and best-selling author of The Return of the God Hypothesis suggests the findings of contemporary biological sciences point in the opposite direction.2021-06-1531 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyVideo: Return of the God Hypothesis Part 1 with Stephen C. Meyer"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1
"Great are the works of the Lord. They are studied by all who delight in them."
Psalm 111:2
Today there exists a confidence in the minds of many skeptics and unbelievers that science has somehow disproved God's existence. According to our guest, Dr. Stephen C. Meyer of Discovery Institute in Seattle, Washington, nothing could be further from the truth. In his latest book, The Return of the God Hypothesis, Dr. Meyer unpacks and examines the leading scientific theories in both cosmology and biology and dem...2021-06-0840 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyReturn of the God Hypothesis Part 1 with Stephen C. MeyerThanks to Podbean listeners, Good Heavens was recently nominated by Welp Magazine to be in a list of the Top 20 Podcasts in Astronomy for 2021! To see the article go to https://welpmagazine.com/20-best-astronomy-podcasts-of-2021/
"In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Genesis 1:1
"Great are the works of the Lord. They are studied by all who delight in them."
Psalm 111:2
Today there exists a confidence in the minds of many skeptics and unbelievers that science has somehow disproved God's existence. According to our guest, Dr. Stephen C. Meyer of D...2021-06-0640 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyCreation & Climate Science Part 2 with Dr. Jake HebertThere are moral implications and assumptions about climate change. And it is thus vitally important we have a proper understanding not only of the history of Earth, but of current scientific paradigms about the environment that smuggle in a moral imperative about what we ought to do about the environment.
If the heavens and earth are not created, if the Genesis Flood did not occur, and God did not judge the world as Scripture tells us, then how do science or the environment give us any moral commands? Is biological life on earth threatened by human behavior? W...2021-05-0145 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyCreation and Climate Science with Dr. Jake HebertClimate science is making headlines today. It is one of the hot topics of our time. But what is the science that underlies current scientific assumptions about the environment? Is it sound? Is the planet headed for a catastrophe of our making?
How do we best interpret the history of Earth? Is the past a key to the present? How many ice ages have there been? Come and see climate science as you probably have not seen in the headlines!
On this special two-part episode of Good Heavens! Wayne and I talk with Institute for Cr...2021-04-2448 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Lamb of God - The Passover in the GospelsMatthew, Mark, and Luke see the Last Supper as a Passover meal. But John seems to say the Passover meal had not yet occurred. Can this discrepancy be reconciled? On this special Easter edition of Good Heavens! Wayne and Dan examine a solution proposed by Dr. Colin J. Humphreys in his book, The Mystery of the Last Supper.
We do not argue this is the only possible or conceivable solution, but we do find it persuasive enough to make a podcast out of it!
So come and see the Lamb of God who takes away the...2021-04-041h 12
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Sun, Moon, and Time - Calendars Part 2If you have not yet listened to part one in our series, we encourage you to check it out before diving into Part 2.
In Part 2, Wayne and I discuss the ways in which ancient Jewish people kept time, we talk about the beauty and regularity of the sun and moon that give us the ability to know times and seasons and we also discuss the wondrous regularity of nature.
Why is it that the sun, moon, and stars all faithfully seem to know their place? Why is it we can predict where they will be in...2021-03-2733 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyFor Signs and for Seasons - Calendars of the Ancient WorldWhat's the date today? What time is it? For many people and times, the answers to these questions were not always easy to determine. Today, we take it for granted we can tell time by a clock or look up a date on a calendar.
On this episode, Wayne and Dan discuss some fun and curious tidbits about calendars, from the Babylonians, Egyptians, and Romans to the late 16th century when there was a great calendrical reform by Pope Gregory VIII. We talk about the Julian and Gregorian calendars and how the sun and moon figured into m...2021-03-2036 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Majesty & Mystery of the Universe Part 2There is much to the universe we simply don't know. And this unknown aspect of the cosmos inspires and fascinates us, inviting us to explore and engage it's tacit voice, "Come and see!"
The psalmist (Psalm 111:2) proclaims, "Great are the works of the LORD, they are studied by all who delight in them". While many scientists who study the cosmos do not acknowledge God as the Creator, their dedication to knowing more about the heavens tells us the created order is imbued with an inestimable value, majesty, awe, and wonder.
We are willing to spend ti...2021-03-0641 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Majesty and Mystery of the Universe Part 1The universe is filled with "known unknowns" to quote the former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. They are fascinating, mysterious and worthy of our attention. There are all sorts of wonderous and fantastically mysterious light sculptures in the cosmos. We talk about the mysteries of stars, galaxies, galaxy structures, fast radio bursts, gamma ray bursts, and all kinds of other things that presently remain a mystery to astronomers, cosmologists, and astrophysicists. And we think all these great unknowns point to the glory of God in Christ. So come and see what's up in our marvelous universe and be amazed by...2021-02-2540 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyCOMETS Part 2 - The Mystery of Lifes OriginSomehow Wayne and Dan are still riding along on a comet as they explore the mysteries and intrigue of these celestial wonders! Could comets actually have helped to kickstart life? Just what kind of things must line up in order for this to have happened? What comets can we see in 2021?
Dan made another video trailer for this episode, click here and HANG ON!
Video clips from ESA, NBC News, the Discovery Institute.
Books:
See David A. J. Seargent's book on Amazon, "The Greatest Comets in History: Broom Stars and...2021-01-2153 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyCOMETS! Part 1 - Did They Help Start Life On Earth?Come along and ride a comet with Wayne and Dan as they explore the mysteries and intrigue of these celestial wonders! Why are they so regular? Why are they so surprising? How do they behave? What are they made of? From where did they come? And could they have seeded life on our planet? From Halley and ISON to the present day extraordinary accomplishment of the European Space Agency's Rosetta mission to Comet 67P, comets continue to fascinate us. Come and see what's up with comets and find out how you can catch one in 2021!
To see a v...2021-01-0935 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Harmony of Creation Part 2 with Dr. Christina GeorgeWe live in a fragmented world where everything seems to be classified, separated, divided and reduced to its subatomic bareness. Morality seems subjective, beauty is illusory and subjective, and we are confused about what is ultimately true about the world.
We've lost or are barely holding on to the idea that it's not only possible, but absolutely necessary to see the world as being reconciled in Christ. Despite what appears to us to be a host of unending confusion and fragmentation, we are assured by God that He upholds all things by the word of His power (H...2020-12-2357 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Harmony of Creation Part 1 with Dr. Christina GeorgeThere is a music in creation for those who have the ears to ear it. From the singing stars present at the foundation of the Earth, to the song of Moses after the miraculous crossing of the Yam Suf, to the silent songs of nature, from stars to sparrows, as well as songs we make as image bearers of God, all point to a kingdom and country not of this world.
Hearing this music helps us to understand the world more holistically, enabling us to perceive it all centered upon the risen Lord Jesus - from science, t...2020-12-2053 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Expanse of Heaven with Dr. Danny Faulkner (Part 2)This is part two of our conversation with chief veteran astronomer of Answers in Genesis, Dr. Danny Faulkner. If you've not caught part one, you don't want to miss it! On this episode Danny and Wayne answer questions we took from Twitter, we talk about the recent tragic news about the Arecibo Radio Telescope in Puerto Rico collapsing, and we talk about a some unusual objects that passed through our solar system in recent times. And of course, we discuss how we think all of this news about the heavens, as well as our fascination with the cosmos, all p...2020-12-1747 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Expanse of Heaven - with Dr. Danny Faulkner of Answers In Genesis (Part 1)On day two of the Creation week, the Bible tells us that God created the "expanse" (raqia in Hebrew). For centuries, many have believed the "expanse" to be made of something solid. On day four, God creates the greater and lesser lights and the stars and places them all in the expanse. The translators of the Septuagint translated raqia as the stereoma, a solid, crystal sphere. Jerome translated raqia into the Latin firmamentum. In this special two-part episode of Good Heavens! Wayne and Dan chat with veteran astronomer Dr. Danny Faulkner about what he has come to understand raqia a...2020-12-0737 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyString Theory and Faith with Dr. Tom RudeliusWhat is string theory? In the field of physics, it's a relatively novel idea that suggests at the very smallest level, subatomic particles are made up of tiny, vibrating filaments, rather than point-like particles. These filaments are known as "strings", each with particular resonances, like strings on a musical instrument comprising different notes. The vibrations of the strings produce the particles physicists understand today.
But string theory is still theoretical and somewhat counterintuitive to common sense, as the mathematics proposes that there are extra dimensions in our universe. But neither the strings or the extra dimensions have b...2020-11-251h 04Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyString Theory, Science, and Theology with Dr. Tom RudeliusWhat is string theory? In the field of physics, it's a relatively novel idea that suggests at the very smallest level, subatomic particles are made up of tiny, vibrating filaments, rather than point-like particles. These filaments are known as "strings", each with particular resonances, like strings on a musical instrument comprising different notes. The vibrations of the strings produce the particles physicists understand today.
But string theory is still theoretical and somewhat counterintuitive to common sense, as the mathematics proposes that there are extra dimensions in our universe. But neither the strings or the extra dimensions have b...2020-11-191h 04
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGod, Black Holes, and the End of the Universe with Sarah SalvianderA special Good Heavens!/Apologetics Profile presentation of Dr. Sarah Salviander's chapter on God and black holes from The Story of the Cosmos - How the Heavens Declare the Glory of God. TheStoryoftheCosmos.com
What is a black hole? Where are they? How were they discovered? How does the majesty, mystery, and enigma of black holes point to the glory of God? Come along on this special episode and find out! Dr. Sarah Salviander received her PhD in astrophysics from the University of Texas at Austin. She was a researcher at UT for sixteen years, where she spe...2020-11-051h 18
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Wardrobe at 70 with Dr. Michael WardC.S. Lewis's The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe turned 70 this month (October 2020). In the midst of a difficult year of pandemics and politics, now is the perfect time to reacquaint yourself with C.S. Lewis's timeless classic. What's in your "spare oom" that can lead to adventures undreamt and unsought?
Come along with us on this special combined episode of Good Heavens! and Apologetics Profile as we celebrate the imaginative, cosmological, literary, and apologetic wonders of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe with C.S. Lewis scholar Dr. Michael Ward.
Dr. Ward se...2020-10-291h 14
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Constellations - Leo the LionThis is the second episode in our series on the constellations from a biblical perspective. Leo is our featured constellation on this episode. We talk about Leo's kingly nature, a little bit of its legend and lore, and explore a few of the sights you can see within this ancient pattern of stars.
The Bible says that the heavens declare the glory of God, they do not predict the future nor tell anyone what their fortune is. But they can and should remind us of God's glory and His faithfulness to us.
S...2020-10-2211 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyLet There Be Science! Why God Loves Science and Science Needs God
Join us as we have a lovely chat with physics professor and Fellow of the Royal Society, Dr. Tom Mcleish and physics & science teacher David Hutchings, both from the UK. We discuss why science and the Christian faith are not only not incompatible, but that science truly needs God, specifically the Lord Jesus.
Their book, the the title of this podcast episode, is not a superficial Christian sticky-note attached to a highly secularized scientific methodology. No! Rather, it is a very easy-to-grasp, edifying, Christ-centered, tour-de-force from which readers of all ages and backgrounds can appreciate and learn s...2020-10-131h 24
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThird Anniversary Episode - Lessons for today from Johannes KeplerJohannes Kepler lived a remarkable life during equally remarkable times. On this special Third-Anniversary episode of Good Heavens, Wayne and Dan talk about Kepler‘s accomplishments and his character. He lived during the Catholic Counter Reformation in a time when there was much superstition. In spite of great hardship and personal loss Kepler influenced people away from superstition and made revolutionary discoveries about the planets. Kepler's Mother was accused of witchcraft in a time when many women were being wrongly executed for witchcraft. But Kepler did a legal defense of his Mother and eventually she was freed. He demonstrated remarka...2020-10-011h 13
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Constellations - Orion the HunterThis will be a new series on the constellations - short audio stories & astronomy facts about the visible constellations known today from the northern hemisphere. Each episode will hopefully be less than ten minutes.
Our first featured constellation will be Orion the Hunter. A hunter, a god, a fool, a warrior, with many beautiful astronomy sights you can see with your own two eyes. These celestial audio vignettes will also consider how these constellations reflect the glory of God.
Dan is going to try and cover all the visible constellations visible to us in Europe an...2020-09-2107 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Wonder and Majesty of Binary Stars!Cultivating a deeper appreciation and understanding of what God has created is an act of worship. God has given us two books, the book of nature and the book of Scripture. They are meant to be read together. As Psalm 19 shows, David speaks of creation in the first six verses and then speaks of God's revelation in and through His word in verses 7-13. He then concludes the Psalm with a prayer "May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Thy sight, my Rock and my Redeemer."
In contemplating both th...2020-09-1947 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Gift of Discovery - Part 2 with Astrophysicist Dr. Tim HamiltonOn part two of our discussion with Dr. Tim Hamilton, we chat about something he discovered while sifting through images taken by Hubble! The world is still filled with God's gifts, waiting to be discovered. You don't have to be an astrophysicist to receive from God's bounty! You don't have to be a scientist to make a discovery! God freely gives us gifts because He loves us, not because we earned it or deserved it.
When David considered the heavens, it reminded him of God's care for Him.
So we hope Tim's story of discovery wi...2020-09-081h 03Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyHubble, Discovery, Science, and Faith with Dr. Tim HamiltonDo cutting-edge astrophysics and the Christian faith go together?
Yes! On this episode, we speak with Dr. Tim Hamilton, an astrophysicist who recently made an exciting and unexpected discovery looking through images from the Hubble Space Telescope as he was studying quasars. The object TIm discovered is tentatively called by a colleague of his "Hamilton's Object".
Tim is also a Christian who enjoys contemplating how God's actions in the physical world might best explained. What are miracles? How did God created the universe? Can science find out everything God did in the beginning?
...2020-08-291h 00Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyPart 2 of God, Stephen Hawking, and the MultiverseDoes the Physics of the Universe do away with God? Of course not! On part 2 of our conversation with David Wilkinson and Dave Hutchings, we explore further the implications of the late Dr. Hawking's engagement with the idea of God and what the implications are for a universe bereft its Creator. The late Dr. Stephen Hawking was a theoretical physicist whose pioneering work in black holes forever impacted the way we look at the universe. But what of the implications of his thoughts about God? Ought we to assume Hawking's brilliance in trying to understand the cosmos is transferable whe...2020-08-2258 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyGod, Stephen Hawking, and the Multiverse Part 1Dr. Stephen Hawking was a brilliant Cambridge theoretical physicist whose pioneering work on black holes and the origin of the universe put him in the public eye and imagination. His book A Brief History of Time was a runaway bestseller, with some 10 million copies having been sold worldwide since its publication in 1988. Despite the limitations of ALS, Dr. Hawking went on to father children, write more books, give lectures, travel, and continue to do research. Remarkably, he lived to the age of 76, much to the astonishment of the entire watching world. His life and work define a generation of o...2020-08-081h 00
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Sun and Moon Stand Still - Encouragement From Joshua 10
Critics of Scripture have dismissed it. Skeptics mock it. And even some Christians will attempt to explain the heavenly events described in Joshua 10 as "natural" phenomenon or that Joshua's words were simply poetic or an allusion to something else.
Did the sun and moon really "stand still" in the Valley of Aijalon as described in the Bible? What really happened? How can this passage from the Old Testament be an encouragement for us today in these troubling times? Tune in for Wayne and Dan's discussion. We hope it will remind you of Jesus.
For m...2020-07-231h 12
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyWayne Reads Joshua Chapter 10:1-28Did the sun and moon really "stand still" in the Valley of Aijalon as described in the Bible? Is Jesus still governing the goings on in the heavens and earth? We live in a time where we, like Joshua, should be strong and courageous. But only the Lord Jesus can give us that necessary strength and freedom from fear. We hope our reflections on Joshua 10 will be an encouragement to everyone. In this program Wayne reads from Joshua chapter 10, verses 1-28 (NIV, 1984 Bible). This provides the background for a podcast coming soon on the Long Day of Joshua with W...2020-07-1909 min
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyChrist and the Created Order with Dr. Andrew B. Torrance"In conversations about science and faith, Jesus Christ rarely comes up."
So begins the introduction to a 2018 anthology of essays titled Christ and the Created Order - Perspectives from Theology, Philosophy, and Science, edited by Andrew B. Torrance and Thomas H. McCall.
If Jesus is to have first place in everything, that means He should have first place in discussions about science and theology. But sadly, for many reasons historically, theologically, philosophically, and scientifically, He does not. What do we do? What should we do? How should we see Jesus in relation to all that H...2020-07-041h 21Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyCosmologists Say the Strangest Things!If you have ever tried understanding some of the cutting-edge theoretical models of the universe, you know what we're talking about! Yet for the most part, some scientists who study the universe, especially if they are professed skeptics or atheists, will say some pretty odd things about God, things that are far and away outside the realm of their particular cosmological ideas.
On this episode, Wayne and Dan discuss some of these "strange" sayings of cosmologists and astrophysicists, including thoughts of Dr. Leonard Susskind, Sir Arthur Eddington, Dr. Carl Sagan, (indirectly the late Dr. Stephen Haw...2020-06-171h 33Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomySearching for Natural Darkness in an Age of Artificial Light with Paul BogardOn our last episode, Dan spoke with Dr. John Barentine, the director for public policy for the International Dark Sky Association about preserving our night skies and about constellations and their attendant lore. On this episode, Dan speaks with Paul Bogard, author of The End of Night, Searching for Darkness in an Age of Artificial Light. It is a catalogue of adventures Paul took to some of the brightest and darkest skies on the planet, from the city of Paris, to the island of Sark, where there is not a single automobile or street light. Paul also visited several na...2020-06-081h 09Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyPreserving the Night Skys: John Barentine of the International Dark Sky AssociationMany of us cannot see or experience the beauty and glory of a truly dark, star-filled night sky. The ever-growing urban lights of large cities blind us to the ancient wonder of the heavens. There is a growing interest in astro-tourism, people willing to travel to dark-sky preserves to experience and learn more about the heavens.
On this episode of Good Heavens! Dan talks with the public policy director of the International Dark Sky Association, (https://www.darksky.org/) Dr. John Barentine, about the importance of preserving truly dark-sky environments, and about the importance of comm...2020-05-311h 19Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAstronomy. What's the Use?This is part one of Dan's interview with astronomer and educator Dr. David Bradstreet, professor of astronomy at Eastern University in Pennsylvania and an expert on binary stars. David has been teaching astronomy for over four decades and is a co-contributor to our book, The Story of the Cosmos - How the Heavens Declare the Glory of God as well as the co-author of Star Struck: Seeing the Creator in the Wonders of Our Cosmos. He even has an asteroid named after him!
On this episode David shares with us his pedagogical insights into the contemplative benefits of...2020-05-2144 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyConversation with the Vatican Astronomer Brother Guy ConsolmagnoOn this episode of Good Heavens! Dan has a fascinating sit-down chat with the chief Vatican Astronomer Brother Guy Consolmagno. Brother Guy is a Jesuit Priest, astrophysicist, meteorite specialist, author and popular communicator of science. We talk about everything from poetry to the difference between a meteor and a meteorite, Galileo's trials, science and faith, why the Vatican has a community of priest/astronomers and why the heavens should matter to all of us, believer and nonbeliever alike.
For more information and a wonderful resource for seeing how faith and science cohere, be sure to ch...2020-05-031h 12Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAliens, UFO's and the Bible - Part 2 with Gary BatesAs a culture we are enamored with science fiction. And as science has increasingly become the dominant cultural authority of our time, the line between what was once relegated to the realm of pure fiction and fantasy and the realm of the physical sciences has increasingly been blurred.
It was the imaginations of the late planetary scientist Carl Sagan and his wife Ann Druyan who wrote the book called Contact which also become a popular movie. Contact is a good example of how we are accustomed to the idea of real science being combined with creative imagination. I...2020-04-261h 04Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyAliens, UFO's, and the Bible - Part 1 with Gary BatesWhat should Christians think about alien life? Are alien abduction stories real? Is it all just science fiction and our imagination or is there something more going on? How would extraterrestrial life impact the Christian faith? Does the Bible say anything about beings from other worlds?
On this episode we talk with veteran ufologist Gary Bates of Creation Ministries International. Gary has decades of experience in researching UFO and the alien phenomena, and he is a dedicated follower of Christ. So come along with Good Heavens! to Roswell, New Mexico and beyond as we have a fascinating d...2020-04-191h 05Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyUnsolved Mysteries of the Cosmos (Big Bang Part 2)The Big Bang is the dominant scientific model of the cosmos, but it is not without a few unsolved riddles. On this episode of Good Heavens! Wayne and Dan discuss some of the unsolved mysteries that Big Bang cosmology neither predicted nor can presently explain. We're not saying scientific models of the cosmos are bad, per se, nor are we criticizing scientists who labor to uncover the wonders of the universe. But we are saying that models of the universe are not how the "actual" universe is! Only the Lord who made it all knows precisely how it all...2020-04-131h 11
Good Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyA Conversation with Dr. Michael Ward - Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday Part 2From our vantage point, the universe we inhabit can seem both at once stunningly good and wondrous but also heinously indifferent, cruel, and even senselessly evil. How can we ever hope to reconcile both states of affairs?
In part 2 of our discussion of Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday Dr. Michael Ward offers us more insightful exhortations as to how our own limited sense perception of the universe is part of Chesterton's masterful narrative. What is the universe "really" like? Is it possible for us to see the cosmos, trees, rocks, clouds, or even stars and the s...2020-04-1043 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyA Conversation with Dr. Michael Ward - Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday Part 1A fun, insightful, inspiring and enlightening book discussion with Dr. Michael Ward on the robust and weighty mind and imagination of Gilbert Keith Chesterton. In this two-part episode, Michael and Dan explore the wonders, twists, and turns of Chesterton's 1908 classic mystery-spy-earthquake-symphony love story The Man Who Was Thursday, A Nightmare. Our adventure begins with a few excerpts from the novel! Part 2 will be coming soon.
Dr. Michael Ward is a Senior Research Fellow at Blackfriars Hall, University of Oxford, and a Professor of Apologetics at Houston Baptist University. He is the author of the award-winning Planet Narnia: Th...2020-04-0535 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyComing Soon - Dr. Michael Ward on G. K. ChestertonA preview of our upcoming discussion with Dr. Michael Ward about G.K. Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday - A Nightmare.
Look for this program on April 10th. This will be the second conversation on Good Heavens with Dr. Ward. Dr. Ward is a C.S. Lewis scholar from the University of Oxford. He is also a professor at Houston Baptist University. Check out his website at http://www.michaelward.net/
2020-04-0301 minGood Heavens! The Human Side of AstronomyThe Bible and the Big BangMany Christians often use the Big Bang as an apologetic defense for the beginning of our universe. Is this a confirmation of what Scripture says? That is a discussion that has been ongoing ever since the idea of the Big Bang was put forth in the early 20th century and we don't attempt to "solve" it on this episode by any means! But what we hope to accomplish in this two part series is 1) give an overview of what Scripture says about God creating the heavens and the Earth and 2) show the differences between Big Bang cosmology and the Bi...2020-03-281h 13