79. The Scientist and the Miracle

Joshua Brown, a respected neuroscience professor at Indiana University was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in 2003. It was devastating news, Joshua was only 30, and a new father. And so, with nothing to lose, he and his wife pursued an unconventional path - especially for a scientist. Together with their newborn daughter, they travelled across America, praying for a miracle.

Matthew Syed delves into instances where inexplicable recoveries have been interpreted as evidence of divine intervention. He examines the unexpected ways in which the Vatican works with scientists to deem certain events miraculous. The whole idea touches on something deeply personal to Matthew as someone who grew up in a family that believed in miracle healings. He now struggles with the idea and is a firm non-believer, but he reunites with a much-loved pastor from his childhood for a frank conversation and meeting of their two viewpoints. Through Joshua’s remarkable journey, Matthew probes at whether miracles can ever be compatible with scientific thinking.

With Joshua Brown, Professor of psychological and brain sciences at Indiana University and Director of the Global Medical Research Institute; oncologist Dr Ranjana Srivastava; Jacqueline Duffin, haematologist, historian, and Professor Emerita at Queen’s University, Canada; and Matthew’s childhood pastor, Nigel Thompson.

Presenter: Matthew Syed
Producer: Vishva Samani
Editor: Katherine Godfrey
Sound Design and Mix: Mark Pittam
Theme music by Ioana Selaru
A Novel production for BBC Radio 4

Featuring archive from the Reinhard Bonnke Legacy Collection -Something to Shout About, produced and distributed by Christ for All Nations (CfaN) ministry.