Wednesday 30th April 2025 | 6pm

Exploding the myths of conflict in science and religion: a North East contribution

Reverend Professor David Wilkinson

For many people, the relationship between science and religion has been characterised by a model of conflict featuring the dark ages, Galileo, and Darwin. Contemporary historians increasingly see this narrative as a misleading myth. In the North East, starting with the Venerable Bede, through Thomas Wright and Temple Chevallier to cosmologist Paul Davies, the relationship between science and Christian theology has been challenging, fruitful, and energising. In this lecture, David Wilkinson traces the history of the North East’s contributions to the big questions of life, the Universe and God.

Reverend Professor David Wilkinson is a professor in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University and has PhDs in astrophysics and systematic theology. He leads the project ‘Equipping Christian Leadership in an Age of Science’, an international research project which works to equip senior Christian leaders with the tools, context, and skills they need to engage confidently with science in their ministry and personal faith. He is a regular contributor to Radio 4’s ‘Thought for the Day’ and has lectured and written widely on the relationship between science and religion. His most recent book, 'God, Stephen Hawking and the Multiverse: What Hawking Said and Why it Matters' (SPCK, 2020) is widely available.

A LIVE Lit & Phil Event | FREE

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Exploding the myths of conflict in science and religion | David Wilkinson