Atheists, agnostics and religious believers from across the diocese are all invited to a series of lectures entitled the Puzzle of God to be held in a Dales church.
St Cuthbert’s, Pateley Bridge is the venue for five talks by Dr Peter Vardy that are spread between September and January 2025.
Revd Darryl Hall of St Cuthbert’s said it was important to teach the Christian faith in our churches as a means of grounding believers in a deep and meaningful understanding of their spiritual journey.
"In an age where the noise of the world competes to drown out the voice of God, it is more important than ever to equip our congregations with a robust and thoughtful faith," said Reverend Darryl.
"Dr. Peter Vardy's upcoming series of talks at St Cuthbert's Church, Pateley Bridge, is a timely and invaluable resource, offering profound insights into the foundational aspects of Christianity. From exploring the nature of God to grappling with the problem of evil, and understanding the relationship between faith and reason, these sessions will not only enrich our knowledge but also strengthen our faith, enabling us to live out our beliefs with confidence and clarity."
Booking is not essential, but due to high demand at the previous lecture series run by Dr Vardy and for catering purposes, it would help if anyone who wants to attend could advise Revd Darryl at darryl.hall@leeds.anglican.org
The Wednesday evening talks begin at 6.30pm for 7pm.
THE NATURE OF GOD Atheists, agnostics and religious believers are divided about the meaning of the word God. This session will examine the main alternatives and their strengths and weaknesses as well as exploring why this issue is significant in today’s world. (September 18, 2024)
THE PROBLEM OF EVIL Believers hold that God is all powerful, wholly good and yet evil exists. Critics will maintain that this is a logical contradiction and shows why belief in God is simply irrational. St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas’ approaches will be explained together with a radically different alternative held by many Protestants. The challenge of Job and Dostoyevski’s Ivan Karamazov will be explored and the relevance of the Shoah (the holocaust) will be evaluated. (October 16, 2024)
RELIGIOUS EXPERIENCE Tens of thousands of people across the world and through history and across the centuries have claimed to experience God. Do such claims provide good evidence for God’s existence and what alternative explanations can be provided for such claims? (November 13, 2024)
FAITH AND REASON In a world increasingly dominated by reason and science, can belief in God be justified or is it now to be judged irrational and to be abandoned? Major traditional arguments for and against God’s existence will be outlined. The difference between those which seek to prove or disprove God’s existence and those arguments which rest on an assessment of probability will be evaluated. (December 11, 2024)
WHAT IS CHRISTIANITY? The essential Christian beliefs are set out in the creeds. It is not, however, as simple as that. Pope Francis is the leader of by far the largest Christian religious domination yet opinions on him are divided within the Catholic world. This session will examine the background to this tension and why it is significant.