"Has God Gone Global?" — Night Waves — BBC Radio 3

From the BBC blurb:

Philip Dodd is joined by a panel of thinkers at the Sage Gateshead to discuss the impact global religion will have on future politics - for good or ill:

David Holloway, vicar of Evangelical Jesmond Parish Church in Newcastle argues that Britain must reconnect with its Christian roots.

Medhi Hassan, Senior Political Editor of the New Statesman Magazine and practising Muslim. A key opponent of Islamophobia in the British Press.

Maryam Narmazie, political activist and spokesperson for Iran Solidarity, Equal Rights Now, the One Law for All Campaign against Sharia Law in Britain and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.

Philip Blond, influential theologian behind Red Toryism and Director of the Res publica think tank.

(http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00wfxwh#synopsis)

45 minutes streaming audio available on iPlayer:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00wfxwh/Night_Waves_Free_Thinking_2010_Has_God_Gone_Global/

The discussion was considerably frustrating to listen to. Maryam Namazie had her work cut out countering the usual inanities: secularists have no basis for morality, Dawkins' stridency is the last gasp of atheism, we must live in harmony with other religions even though mine is true and all the others are false, etc.

"News Quiz" discusses "Thought for the Day"

Friday's "News Quiz" on BBC Radio 4 had a couple of minutes on the BBC Trust's decision this week not to allow non-religious viewpoints on the Today Programme's "Thought for the Day" segment. The participants are Francis Wheen, Carrie Quinlan, Jeremy Hardy (who has a go at Richard Dawkins) and Sue Perkins, with Sandi Toksvig in the chair.

Relevant excerpt (2'46" 1.3 Mb mp3):
http://rapidshare.com/files/309794336/NewsQuiz_excerpt_BBCR4i-20091120.mp3

Podcast episode (28'06" 25.8 Mb mp3) downloadable for seven days:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/fricomedy/fricomedy_20091120-1855a.mp3

Audio stream from iPlayer for seven days:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00nws6r/The_News_Quiz_Series_69_Episode_9/

For iPlayer-deprived listeners, download the relevant episode's mp3 here:
http://rapidshare.com/files/310177682/FriComedy__The_News_Quiz_20_Nov_2009.mp3

"Religion and the Web" - BBC Radio 4, 2009-07-20

Beyond Belief is a long-standing BBC Radio 4 series, hosted by Ernie Rea, dealing with the religious interface with the everyday. Back in July it covered the internet:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00lny4g

The audio is available on iPlayer:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b00lny4g

The first half of this 28-minute radio programme consists of various pro and con arguments about internet social networks, which mostly come down to "The internet isn't real!" (and therefore of little use in relationships). In particular the seminarian from Colorado seems to take the view that the internet is no good because it wasn't mentioned in the Bible, quoting a verse from John that he interprets as valuing face-to-face communication over writing letters. (Er... tell that to St Paul?)

But he misses the point. The internet is not something wholly different and "evil", it is merely an extension of previous media and means of communication. As host of The Rev Up Review podcast I contacted many people in the United States by email, instant messaging and Skype - people I am unlikely to have contacted otherwise. They would have been effectively out of my reach here in Portsmouth, UK.

Were these relationships of any less value that face-to-face ones? Perhaps. But in 2007 I flew across the Atlantic to attend a convention, and I met them in person, face-to-face. So these particular "internet" relationships are now exactly equivalent to "real life" relationships. Without the internet, however, they would almost certainly never have existed.

Listeners beyond the reach of iPlayer can download the mp3 audio from RapidShare:
http://rapidshare.com/files/341818810/BeyondBelief_ReligionAndTheWeb_20090720.mp3

Apes and Angels - BBC Radio 4 Afternoon Play

On Tuesday I was alerted (thanks Dad!) to the broadcast of an Afternoon Play on Radio 4, written by Jim Eldridge:

"A clash over the teaching of creationism at a flagship academy looks set to bring damaging publicity and embarrass the schools minister, who has close links to the industrialist behind the academy."

Available on BBC iPlayer:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radio4_aod.shtml?radio4/afternoonplay_tue

If and when the iPlayer link above expires, download the mp3 from RapidShare here: http://rapidshare.com/files/341838131/ApesAndAngels_BBCR4i-20090106.mp3

The play appears to take the side of the school, against a teacher who objects to teaching creationism, but in the words of a well-known UK science blogger, I think you'll find it's a bit more complicated than that.

Atheists no longer freaks of nature?

Last Sunday morning Riazat Butt, the Guardian's religious affairs correspondent, suggested on BBC Radio Four's "Sunday" that in 2009 atheists would no longer be considered "freaks of nature".

The programme is available as a podcast:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/radio4/sunday/sunday_20090104-0937a.mp3
(44 min, 20 MB)

or via the BBC iPlayer:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/console/b00g920d
(the relevant section is about 24 minutes in)

If the podcast/iPlayer version expires, download the mp3 from RapidShare here:
http://rapidshare.com/files/341841039/sunday_20090104-0937a.mp3
A one-minute clip can be downloaded here:
http://rapidshare.com/files/341841998/Sunday_AtheistFreakOfNature_BBCR4i-20090104.mp3