Francis Collins | Dig Deeper
In the second half of our conversation with Francis Collins, he recalls writing Language of God over ten years ago and how the excited public response to the book sparked his idea for BioLogos. We reflect on the early days at the organization as well as Francis’ departure to become the head of the National Institutes of Health. Despite his departure from BioLogos, he still shares a firm commitment to gracious dialogue, to finding common ground with those with whom we disagree. Francis hopes we can learn to approach each other with respect and spend time with people who are different from us. We discuss the perception of religion in the scientific community and which questions science can answer and which ones it cannot. Finally Francis looks forward to the future of science—the exciting new horizons afforded by single-cell analysis, cryogenic electron microscopy, and treatments for genetic diseases.
More information on the concern about gene editing of human embryos can be found at the following links:
Call for a moratorium on heritable genome editing in the journal Nature
Francis Collins supports international moratorium on germline editing
See the story about a cure for sickle cell anemia on 60 Minutes.
Original music in this episode from Carp.
This episode of Language of God was hosted by Deb Haarsma and Jim Stump and produced by Colin Hoogerwerf. Additional help from Nate Mulder.
Francis Collins
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At BioLogos, “gracious dialogue” means demonstrating the grace of Christ as we dialogue together about the tough issues of science and faith.
So What Is BioLogos?
Well it all began with a scientist and a book. Francis Collins, the physician and geneticist who led the Human Genome Project, wrote the book, The Language of God. In it he describes his own journey from atheism to Christian faith, and the harmony between Christianity and science.
Today, BioLogos continues to carry out the vision of Collins, showing that you don’t have to choose between modern science and biblical faith.