Épisodes

  • Episode 104 - Is Faith just pretending to know? Part 1

    Episode 104 - Is Faith just pretending to know? Part 1
    Oct 6 2026
    Show Notes
    Is faith “complete trust or confidence or something or someone” or “belief without evidence” which implies “pretending to know things that you don’t know”? That was the Unbelievable debate over a decade ago which has stayed in Ed’s mind ever since. He has long thought it over, wondering whether the truth is more nuanced than those extremes. He did a Bible study on it, which will be Part 2, but here in Part 1 we discuss that Unbelievable debate, the idea of ‘blind faith’, Kierkegaard’s ‘leap of faith’ and how we find the concept used in Christian preaching.

    Links:
    The Unbelievable? Show
    Search for Peter Boghossian vs Tim McGrew 24 May 2014

    Kierkegaard and faith, here’s a good intro video

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgwzVN1Rnpg


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    57 min
  • Episode 103 - An Anatomy of a Discrepancy

    Episode 103 - An Anatomy of a Discrepancy
    Sep 6 2026
    Show Notes
    The inconsistencies between the two NT narratives of Judas Iscariott’s death has long been a ‘poster child’ of bible contradictions. We are prompted to cover it by an excellent video recently released by CJ Cornthwaite who suggests the actual reasons for the differences between the narratives. We discuss CJ’s work and try to complement it by digging deeper into: the sport of harmonisation, the third account of the death given by Papias, the OT allusions and a surprising feature of the bible translations.
    Links:
    The video recently released by CJ Cornthwaite
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sy6GctdghpQ

    The article by Rendel Harris on the failure of harmonization:
    https://www.journals.uchicago.edu/doi/pdf/10.1086/477430

    A link for the Papias text:
    https://www.roger-pearse.com/weblog/tag/judas/

    The legend of Ahiquar and the death of Nadan:

    https://sacred-texts.com/bib/fbe/fbe264.htm

    Audrey Conrad on the OT allusions, bible refs: Ps. 41:9, John 13:18 & 2Samuel 17:23
    in "The Fate of Judas" (Toronto Journal of Theology [7] 1992)

    How to look at the Acts version of the death in all English translations:

    https://www.biblegateway.com/verse/en/Acts%201%3A18

    (search in the page for ‘hang’)

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    1 h et 15 min
  • Episode 102 - The mysterious world of the Trinity

    Episode 102 - The mysterious world of the Trinity
    Aug 4 2026
    Show Notes

    Andrew has noticed that debates within Christianity on the Trinity have become much more prominent recently. We go back even to the Old Testament and cover the 1stC AD, Church Fathers, Council of Nicaea, the Reformation, and more recent debates following the story. We marvel at how differences in interpretation have been so divisive, for example how Arian and his views which nearly became Orthodoxy were later so roundly condemned.

    Links:

    Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article:
    https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/trinity/

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    1 h et 15 min
  • Episode 101 - Belief is Not a Choice, with Jon Cohen

    Episode 101 - Belief is Not a Choice, with Jon Cohen
    Jul 7 2026
    Show Notes
    We welcome Jon Cohen who leads us on his journey in life which has more recently led him to engage with Christians of all kinds on his successful YouTube live-stream show “Unconvinced”. Unlike many of us, he has no history as a Christian and so has a true outsider’s view of the faith. A key step in his thinking has been exploring the implications of our beliefs not being our choices. It’s written up in his forthcoming book – see link in show notes.

    Links:

    Don’t miss Jon’s book. Pre-order “Unconvinced: How Belief Is Not a Choice and Why That Changes Everything” here:

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Unconvinced-Belief-Choice-Changes-Everything/dp/149309632X/

    And the YouTube show
    https://www.youtube.com/@JonCohenOfficial

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    1 h et 28 min
  • Episode 100 - Celebrating our 100th Episode with John Nelson

    Episode 100 - Celebrating our 100th Episode with John Nelson
    Jun 6 2026
    Show Notes

    We started with Episode 1 in Feb 2018, today we celebrate our 100th Episode with friend John Nelson, who is now the main host at Unbelievable?. We discussed John’s PhD thesis book on what Jesus looked like, his work at Unbelievable?, his tour with Alex O’Connor and his blog “Behind the Gospels”.

    We then dove into a specific issue on the background to the gospels – the transmission of the traditions about Jesus’s teaching and actions from his ministry up to the gospel documents.
    And NEWS – Ed’s discussion on evolution with John & Denis Alexander which we raked over in episode 98 has been released by Unbelievable?. See links.

    Links:
    Unbelievable? Show with Ed on evolution:

    “Can a Loving God Use Evolution?” Denis Alexander vs Ed Atkinson hosted by John Nelson, 4 June 2026

    John’s book: “Jesus' Physical Appearance: Biography, Christology, Philosophy”
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Jesus-Physical-Appearance-Christology-Philosophy/dp/0567723208

    John’s “Behind the Gospels” blog:
    https://www.behindthegospels.com/

    The book: “Battle of the Big Bang: The New Tales of Our Cosmic Origins” by Niayesh Afshordi and Phil Halper”:
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Battle-Big-Bang-Cosmic-Origins-ebook/dp/B0DKBHH3YN?ref_=ast_author_mpb

    More recent Unbelievable?

    Shows:

    Richmond Wandera – “My Father was murdered… a sponsor saved my life” Richmond Wandera Interviewed by John Nelson, 18 March 2026

    “What would it take for Alex O’Connor to believe Jesus rose from the dead?” Trent Horn v Alex O’Connor, 30 April 2026

    Hiddenness: “Why Doesn’t God Show Himself?” Dan Paterson vs Joe Schmid hosted by John Nelson, 12 February 2026.

    Uncommon Ground podcast, Episode 7, hosted by Justin Brierley: “Stephen Meyer & Phil Halper: The Big Bang and Fine Tuning. Does the science of the Universe point to God?”

    Bart D. Ehrman’s latest book: “Love Thy Stranger: How Jesus Transformed Our Moral Conscience” April 2026

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Love-Thy-Stranger-Transformed-Conscience-ebook/dp/B0FKMJZJ1V/ref=monarch_sidesheet_title

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    1 h et 30 min
  • Episode 99 - C.S. Lewis's Trilemma

    Episode 99 - C.S. Lewis's Trilemma
    May 7 2026
    Show Notes

    We start by dipping into the book with 50 arguments for God and a chapter “Jesus as God” which says that if we ditch 4th & 5thC debates and modern categories of Trinity, we see Jesus expressing his divinity in his own way. It explains Jesus’ caged language on this as Jesus needing to avoid being stoned for blasphemy.

    We look at some of the key passages in the gospels, in particular looking for differences between the author’s view and Jesus’ proclamations regarding whether he was God. This leads on to the Liar Lunatic Lord argument made famous by CS Lewis, and the sceptics’ 4th option “Legend”.

    We look at the “Liar” option. And we offer you: Misquoted, Misunderstood, Mythologised and Mistaken.

    Links:

    Books:
    “Evidence for God: 50 Arguments for Faith from the Bible, History, Philosophy and Science” by Mike Licona and William Dembski.

    CS Lewis - “Mere Christianity”

    Bart Ehrman - “How Jesus Became God”

    Richard Carrier’s blog:
    https://www.richardcarrier.info/archives/20130

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    1 h et 15 min
  • Episode 98 - When a Christian fully embraces evolution

    Episode 98 - When a Christian fully embraces evolution
    Apr 6 2026
    Show Notes
    Ed has recently recorded an Unbelievable? Show with Dr Denis Alexander who is an evangelical Christian, a biologist and author of books like “Creation or Evolution: Do We Have to Choose?”. Denis fully embraces evolution. While these ideas are fresh, we took the time to think through how a deep thinking Christian reconciles evolution and faith as it informs theology on suffering, God’s intervention in the world, salvation, the soul and Adam & Eve.

    Links:
    Denis uses John Stott’s idea that Adam was “Homo Divinus”. Here is a fairly short Stott quote:
    https://www.patheos.com/blogs/thepangeablog/200
    9/01/13/quote-to-ponder-john-stott-on-creation-and-evolution/

    Creation Or Evolution: Do We Have to Choose?

    https://www.amazon.co.uk/Creation-Evolution-Do-Have-Choose/dp/1854247468

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    1 h et 24 min
  • Episode 97 PART 2 -The Evangelical Case for Conditiional Immortality

    Episode 97 PART 2 -The Evangelical Case for Conditiional Immortality
    Mar 6 2026
    The evangelical case for conditional Immortality

    Recommended books.

    Edward Fudge - The Fire That Consumes
    Henry Constable - The Duration and Nature of Future Punishment
    Edward White - Life in Christ
    John Stott - Essentials
    Rethinking Hell - Readings in Evangelical Conditionalism
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    1 h et 32 min