John Lennox is Emeritus Professor of Mathematics at the University of Oxford. He is a bioethicist, philosopher, author, and Christian apologist. In this online lecture, from the UBC Graduate and Faculty Christian Forum, Dr. Lennox discusses the current state of AI, its benefits, dangers and future implications.
Human Rights is a pertinent issue these days around the globe. People's lives and livelihood depend on the maintenance of a universal ethic of respect and benevolence. Dr. Gordon E. Carkner draws on the insightful work of Christian Smith at Notre Dame to unpack the issues. Can we sustain the good without God or religious motivation and warrant? That is the million-dollar question, worthy of further discussion and debate. Smith believes that atheists who believe in humanism or human rights are overreaching based on their metaphysical convictions. What do you think?
A lecture from Katharine Hayhoe on "Empowering Climate Conversastions: From Anxiety and Misinformation to Inspired Action"
This event was co-sponsered by UBC Graduate & Faculty Christian Forum, as well as Regent College, Trinity Western University’s Faculty of Natural & Applied Sciences, A Rocha Canada, and CSCA.
What will help Generation Z become successful and more resilient? Dr. Gordon E. Carkner, author and meta-educator, suggests that the secret is to follow the narrative strength of virtue. Zoomers will be well-served if mentors, teachers and employers exhibit character and reveal how virtue works for the common good in real life. Beyond mere career success, we also need relational skill to make life function well. He believes that there is an untapped personal power in virtue waiting for this generation to access. Virtue is a foundational concern today.
Dr. Matthew Lynch, Associate Professor of Old Testament at Regent College, in Vancouver, BC speaks on "The Land Keeps the Score: Violence in Creation according to the Old Testament" in this online webinar.
An online Lecture from UBC Graduate and Faculty Christian Forum on March 14, 2023.
Two of the world's most famous philosophers, Michel Foucault from College de France & Charles Taylor from McGill University, are brought into critical dialogue on the contemporary conundrum of identity formation. Can they help us understand what a robust identity looks like and how to get there? Is the key element 'beauty' or 'the good'? This matters much to many in their teens and twenties especially, but also beyond this age. An identity crisis can strike at any time. Dr. Gordon E. Carkner lays out the two very different solutions offered by these two renowned public intellectuals. He penetrated this debate in his phD dissertation through University of Wales, and also penned the book 'The Great Escape from Nihilism' on the topic. In this session, there are some vital and exciting angles to explore and also some surprising consequences that come to our awareness. What are the sources of self that make you stronger, more imaginative, free, inspired and engaged?
In the modern quest for identity, there is no better place to turn than premiere Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor. In this video, Dr. Gordon Carkner, campus chaplain with graduate students and faculty at UBC Vancouver, discusses moral frameworks and offers fresh language and solutions for the modern identity crisis of Millennials. Spirituality-Morality-Identity are interwoven in this exploration of a mature (thick) identity.
"What should we believe about faith and reason whatever our starting point or prejudgments? It is perhaps a life-long quest to understand the nuances of this faith-reason, knowledge-religion relationship. Nothing is more important for balance in our lives and our thinking inside and outside the university."
The upcoming, online lecture series from UBC Graduate and Faculty Christian Forum for the 2022-2023 school year.
An intro video to Graduate Christian Union at University of British Columbia.
Some elements in modern culture have worked to repress/restrict our language usage--in particular what Charles Taylor calls the 'meta-biological', the language of significance. Restricted language means necessarily limited awareness/thinking capacity. This webinar is not about a lost civilization discovered by an anthropologist, but similar in some ways.
A closer look at Gord & Ute's campus ministry at UBC.
Some allege that the resurrection of Jesus was a hoax. We must decide whether there is a more plausible alternative than an actual physical, bodily resurrection. Much hangs on the answer.
Dr. Ard Louis, Professor of Theoretical Physics at the University of Oxford, speaks on "Science and Scientism" in this online webinar. Dr. Paul Rowe, from Trinity Western University, speaks on "The Appeal of Caesar: the Future of Christians Living in the Authoritarian Context of the Middle East.
An online Lecture from UBC Graduate and Faculty Christian Forum on April 6, 2022.
Many people seem to be hungry for fresh perspectives on the current Western cultural ethos. Dr. Gordon E. Carkner argues that we need to urgently rethink our view of the 'secular'.
In this video, he reveals something quite astonishing in the work of eminent Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor.
What are the theological and philosophical roots or drivers of hospitality? From his research on the self in late modernity, Dr. Carkner delves into this question.