College Faith Stan W. Wallace
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- Education
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67% of high school students head off to college each year, including followers of Christ. Many opportunities and challenges await, both at public universities and private institutions.
This podcast features Christian leaders who understand the people and ideas of higher education. They share their insights and wisdom, helping students flourish intellectually and spiritually during these formative years.
New interviews are posted once a month, discussing topics related to (in no particular order):
*Loving God with the mind (intellectual life on campus, including classroom and study skills, integrating biblical truth and various majors, and engaging other perspectives in healthy and fruitful ways)
*Loving God with the heart (devotional life on campus)
*Understanding the university and one’s place in it
*How to have a redemptive influence on campus
*Finding a healthy church and campus fellowship
*Discerning God’s calling (one’s “vocation,” in the true sense of the word).
The College Faith Podcast is hosted by Dr. Stan Wallace. Dr. Wallace serves as President and CEO of Global Scholars, an international ministry equipping Christian professors to make Christ know on campuses worldwide. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education, a Master of Arts in Philosophy of Religion and Ethics, and a Doctor of Ministry in Christian Thought. Dr. Wallace writes and speaks on issues in apologetics, ethics, philosophy, and theology, mostly at ThinkingChristianly.org.
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#42: A Guide to Majoring in the Biological Sciences
My guest in this edition is Jeff Hardin, Ph.D., professor and former chair of the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Wisconsin. He holds a Ph.D. in Biophysics from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Divinity (M.Div.) from the International School of Theology. In addition to his scholarly work in cell biology and leading textbook on this topic, Jeff has thought much about the intersection of faith and science and regularly addresses these topics in public forums.
In this podcast we discuss:
How Jeff got interested in studying biology
The value of exploring various ideas, and noticing God in the process
How, as a biologist, he benefits from inter-disciplinary conversations
What career opportunities are available with a degree in the biological sciences
How to zero in on the area of biology you are interested in
How he has connected studying biology with his faith, and how he has thrived as a result
Some challenges of being a biologist and a Christian
How he seeks to reveal God in his work as a biologist
Thoughts on how Christians can think about evolution and creation
The role of understanding ethics and broader worldview and religious commitments in studying the biological sciences
Character qualities/traits that are good indicators that a student will flourish studying the biological sciences
The overlap of God’s call for us to care for His creation and current conversations in the biological sciences
The importance for Christians to thoughtfully engage with the biology of neuroscience
The importance for Christians to thoughtfully engage with the worldview, ethics, and practice of genome editing
The growing conversation around “trans-humanism” that will become increasingly important in discussions in the biological sciences
God’s grace for those called to study the biological sciences
The value of joining a professional society in the biological sciences, and connecting with other Christians in the field at the society’s meetings
What Jeff wished his 18-year-old self knew about majoring in the biological sciences
Why it is important for biologists also to study things outside the biological sciences
The importance of finding other Christians in the biological sciences, and how to find them
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
The Isthmus Society
C. S. Lewis, Letters to Malcolm, Chiefly on Prayer
Phillip Johnson, Darwin on Trial
Gilbert Meilaender, Bioethics, a Primer for Christians
Scott Rae, Moral Choices: An Introduction to EthicsJohn Wyatt, Matters of Life and Death: Human Dilemmas in the Light of the Christian Faith
The American Scientific Affiliation
BioLogos
Reasons to Believe
The Center for Bioethics and Human Dignity
The Christian Medical & Dental Association
Francis Collins, The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief -
#41: Sex, College, and the Good Life
My guest in this episode is Scott Phelps, Executive Director of the Abstinence & Marriage Education Partnership. For many years now Scott has spoken to students about the great, long-term benefits of saving sex for marriage, and so I’ve invited him onto the show to share some of what he has learned, and how others have found his insights helpful.
In this podcast we discuss:
How he got interested in the relationship between living life well, flourishing, and sex
Principles, or the successful pathway that most often leads to a good life
Habit formation for life-long intimate relationships
Hope for students who have already been sexually active
Other benefits of waiting for sex until marriage
The example of Joseph, Potiphar’s wife, and Joseph’s future wife (Genesis 37-50)
The disbelief some have about the possibility of abstinence until marriage, yet their interest
How to swim against the alternative cultural narrative of “free sex,” which saturates all media
How his approach differs from most sex education programs
The personal value and apologetic force of the biblical view of sex and marriage
The biggest challenges students face to following the successful pathway to sex, marriage, and the good life
The acceleration and shift in the cultural narrative about sex since the COVID pandemic
How parents might tackle this topic with their children
Simplifying the issue with one simple question
Sex as fire in a firepit or as a forest fire
Living together, sex, future marriage, and divorce
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
Abstinence & Marriage Education Partnership
Dallas Willard, The Spirit of the Disciplines: Understanding How God Changes Lives
Scott Phelps, Excel Curriculum and Workbook
Glenn Stanton, The Ring Makes All The Difference: The Hidden Consequences of Cohabitation and the Strong Benefits of Marriage
Linda Waite and Maggie Gallagher, The Case for Marriage: Why Married People are Happier, Healthier and Better Off Financially
Rick Mattson and Stan Wallace, “Finding the Middle Way in the LGBTQ+ Conversation,” a College Faith podcast
Stan Wallace’s Summary of Virtue Ethics -
#40: Finding the “Middle Way” in the LGBTQ+ Conversation
My guest today is Rick Mattson, a national apologetics specialist and evangelism coach with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship. He often does open “Q and A” sessions on college campuses in which he is asked for insights on how to understand LGBTQ+ issues in ways that embody both truth and love. We discuss some of what he shares on this important topic.
In this podcast we discuss:
How LGBTQ issues come up in his conversations, and why it’s close to his heart
The importance of the larger narrative of Scripture in understanding human sexuality and flourishing
The relation of this issue to the Trinity
How both the physical and spiritual ramifications of the Fall are often neglected in this conversation
How to understand the idea that “God made me this way”
How to understand the idea of a “gay Christian”
Advice for Christian students with same-sex attraction
The modern shift toward “expressive Individualism” underlying much of this conversation
Finding the “middle way” between extreme views of human sexuality
The centrality of spiritual disciplines in healthy friendships and sexuality
How we frame conversations to open further LGBTQ discussions
The importance of having appropriate expectations for our relationships
How to not be bullied, or be bullies, in LGBTQ conversations
What the loving thing to do is in specific situations regarding roommates or gender non-conforming dorms
How to think about attending a gay friend’s wedding
How to think about the use of preferred pronouns
A strategy to think through various other LGBTQ-related issues
How the church can better prepare students to think through these issues
How parents can better prepare students to think through these issues
The hardest question he gets on this question on campus
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
Rick Mattson’s website
Rick Mattson, Faith is Like Skydiving: And Other Memorable Images for Dialogue with Seekers and Skeptics
Rick Mattson, Witness in the Academy: A Guide for Graduate Students, Faculty, and Those Who Minister With Them
Rick’s blog posts on “LGBT+”
Carl Trueman, Strange New World: How Thinkers and Activists Redefined Identity and Sparked the Sexual Revolution
Carl Trueman, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self: Cultural Amnesia, Expressive Individualism, and the Road to the Sexual Revolution
Summit Ministries
“A Practical Guide to Navigating University Culture,” John Stonestreet on the College Faith podcast
World View Academy
“Why Christian Students Must Understand Their and Other’s Worldviews,” Mike Schutt on the College Faith podcast
“How to Choose a College,” David Wunder on the College Faith podcast
Impact 360 -
#39: A Guide to Majoring in The Great Books
This episode continues my sporadic series on the various fields students may choose to study while in college. My guest is Dr. Hannah Eagleson studied the great books at St. John’s College (Annapolis, MD) during her Masters degree, then went on to earn a PhD in Renaissance literature at the University of Delaware.
She has written study guides to The Lord of the Rings and to works by C. S. Lewis and Dorothy L. Sayers. Dr. Eagleson also develops programming to support Christian scholars as they follow Christ and love their neighbors, including work with Global Scholars, Chesterton House (a Christian study center at Cornell University), and the American Scientific Affiliation (a scholarly and professional society for Christians in the sciences).
In this podcast we discuss:
What the “Great Books” are
What “Great Books” university programs are and why they were formed
Difference between Great Books programs at pluralistic and Christian universities
Defining the important literary term “canon”
How Hannah got interested in the Great Books and these university programs
The value of understanding the classical modes of education: grammar, logic, and rhetoric and Classical Christian Education
How the classical model of education contributed to interest in Great Book programs
Hannah’s perspective on the medieval period of intellectual history, as a corrective to our current negative perspectives
Details of specific Great Books programs
How Hannah benefitted from being in a Great Books program
The “seminar” approach to coursework in a Great Books program
Why “new” is not necessarily “better,” especially concerning books
How a Great Books program does and does not help you get a job and make a living, and strategies to better your chances
What a “liberal arts” education is and is not
Strengths and weaknesses of Great Books programs
Suggestions if you want to use a Great Books program to prepare you for graduate studies
How Hannah’s Great Books program continues to shape her today, and will into the future
The positives and negatives of how social media encourages us to engage texts
Defining “literary criticism”
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
Britannica’s Great Books of the Western World series, compiled by Mortimer Adler and Robert Hutchins of the University of Chicago
Baylor Great Texts Program, an honors program within a Christian university setting with many different majors
Biola Torrey Honors College an honors program within a Christian university setting with many different majors
Columbia University Core Curriculum (a program within a secular Ivy League university that engages with great books)
Notre Dame Program of Liberal Studies Great Books Seminars, a program within a Catholic university setting with many different majors
St. John’s College, Annapolis and Santa Fe (the whole program is Great Books)
Thomas Aquinas College, Catholic (the whole program is Great Books)
Dorothy Sayers, “The Lost Tools of Learning”
C. S. Lewis, “On The Reading of Old Books”
George Herbert’s poetry
John Donne’s poetry
Chesterton House, the Christian Study Center at Cornell University
“Why You Need to Join the Great Conversation About the Great Books,” The Art of Manliness Podcast #430
The New Yorker article “What’s So Great About Great-Books Courses?” -
#38: The Pop-Culture Parent: Helping Kids Engage Their World for Christ
My guest in this edition of the College Faith Podcast is Dr. Ted Turnau, co-author of The Pop-Culture Parent: Helping Kids Engage Their World for Christ. Ted has spent many years thinking about how to help children (from the early years through young adulthood) understand, evaluate, and flourish in pop culture that is all around us. He shares some of his insights from his study, how his parents helped and didn’t help him, and lessons learned from raising his own children.
In this podcast we discuss:
What “pop culture” is conceptually and biblically
The two ways Christians tend to respond to popular culture, and a better “middle way”
Daniel and his colleagues as examples of a healthy posture toward popular culture
The goal of the Christian parent in the midst of pop culture
How various parenting styles tend to influence a student’s decisions once at college
The five questions that can help you and your children evaluate things in pop culture
A case study: Evaluating the extremely popular Baldur’s Gate 3 video game
Six things to keep in mind when we talk with our children about pop culture
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
Ted Turnau’s website
Ted Turnau, E. Stephen Burnett, and Jared Moore, The Pop-Culture Parent: Helping Kids Engage Their World for Christ
Ted Turnau, Popologetics: Popular Culture in Christian Perspective
Ted Turnau, Oasis of Imagination: Engaging Our World Through a Better Creativity
Ted Turnau and Ruth Naomi Floyd, Imagination Manifesto: A Call to Plant Oases of Imagination
Andy Crouch, Culture Making: Recovering Our Creative Calling
Christ and Pop Culture (an online magazine and podcast)
Love Thy Nerd (a website thinking Christianly about pop culture)
Ask About Games (a website by Andrew Robertson providing a Christian perspective and evaluation of video games)
Hollywood Jesus: Your Bridge to Pop Culture (a website evaluating streaming shows, movies, and much more from a biblical perspective)
“A Guide to Majoring in the Arts,” College Faith podcast #34 with Cam Anderson, M.F.A. -
#37: Relativism: Feet Firmly Planted in Mid-Air
In this episode we are discussing an idea every student is sure to encounter early and repeatedly during the college years-- the idea of “relativism.” My guest is Greg Koukl, co-author of Relativism: Feet Firmly Planted in Mid-Air and the Founder/President of Stand to Reason, a great apologetics ministry.
In this podcast we discuss:
The prevalence of relativism on campus today (often seen as “expressive individualism”)
Some different forms of relativism students will encounter
Greg’s “inside/outside” distinction, which goes back to the Garden of Eden and the Fall
How relativism is related to the idea of “truth”
Why Christians should not talk about “their faith”
Why we can know “that” something is true without knowing “how” it is true
Why no one is actually a relativist, and how to help a “relativist” see this
How to ask good questions as a way to engage in conversations about relativism (and everything else--”gardening” vs. “harvesting”)
Understanding and discussing the new/current definition of “tolerance”
Responding to relativism on campus (with friends, in classes, in papers, etc.)
The importance of finding common ground in conversations
The value of using this dialogical approach to defend all Christian truth claims
Resources mentioned during our conversation:
Greg Kokhl, Street Smarts: Using Questions to Answer Chrisitanity’s Toughest Challenges
J. Warner Wallace, Cold-Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels
Greg Kokhl, The Story of Reality: How the World Began, How It Ends, and Everything Important that Happens in Between
Greg Kokhl, Tactics: A Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions
Francis Schaeffer’s Trilogy
C.S. Lewis, Perelandra
Randy Newman, Questioning Evangelism: Engaging People’s Hearts the Way Jesus Did
Stand to Reason, Greg’s organization
Greg’s podcasts
Related College Faith Resources:
The Reasonableness of Faith: Why Students Should Study Apologetics with Paul Copan (College Faith podcast #25)
How Asking Good Questions Helps Us Succeed with Randy Newman (College Faith podcast 10)
Stan Wallace, “When it Comes to Weinstein et al., No One is a Moral Relativist--And That’s a Good Thing!”
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