Unbelievable?

The birth narratives of Jesus contain some of the most famous stories in Christianity: the virgin birth, angels and shepherds, the Magi, the star of Bethlehem and Herod’s massacre of the innocents. But did Matthew and Luke actually intend their readers to believe these events happened?

Dr Caleb Friedeman joins John Nelson to challenge a widespread assumption in historical Jesus scholarship: that the infancy narratives can largely be sidelined because they belong more to the world of legend and theological storytelling than history.

Drawing on his new book, Gospel Birth Narratives and Historiography: Reopening a Closed Case, Friedeman compares Matthew and Luke with ancient biographers including Plutarch, Suetonius and Philo. He argues that supposedly “legendary” ancient birth stories often show clear signs of historical intent — including the use and evaluation of sources — and asks whether scholars have been applying the wrong assumptions to the Gospels.

But historical intent doesn’t automatically mean historical accuracy. So what about the difficult questions? Did Luke get the census of Quirinius wrong? Is there any evidence for Herod’s massacre of the innocents? Did Luke really get his information from Mary? And can the apparently different birth stories in Matthew and Luke actually be reconciled?

Can we take the Christmas story seriously as history?

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Pat Allerton joins Luke Martin to explore the growing openness to Christianity, the search for meaning and why faith may be returning to the cultural conversation.

From science and the resurrection to anxiety, healing and his own dramatic conversion, Pat makes the case for why Christianity still speaks to a searching generation.

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Has Christian apologetics become too focused on winning?

Mary Jo Sharp joins John Nelson to confront the darker side of defending the faith: pride, outrage, confirmation bias and the temptation to treat people as arguments to defeat.

What if apologetics is meant to transform the Christian too?

A conversation about truth, humility, suffering and one uncomfortable question:

Does Christianity just make us right, or should it make us good?

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What do we really know about Jesus before he began preaching?

Professor Joan Taylor joins John Nelson to explore the missing years of Jesus, from Bethlehem and Egypt to Nazareth, his family, education and work. Could memories preserved in the Gospels reveal far more history than scholars have assumed?

A fascinating investigation into the childhood, world and experiences that may have shaped Jesus.

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After cancer and intensive chemotherapy, Tyler Staton says he came to know Jesus in a way he never had before: not simply as the victorious Saviour, but as the suffering servant. In this deeply personal conversation with Ruth Jackson, the Bridgetown Church pastor explores unanswered prayer, miraculous healing, anxiety, doubt and why suffering did not destroy his faith. He also reflects on America’s culture wars, Britain’s apparent spiritual revival, the coming age of AI and why beauty and story may increasingly speak to people more powerfully than traditional apologetic arguments.

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Does the apparent fine-tuning of our universe point to God, or are we drawing a theological conclusion from physics we don’t yet understand?

Philosophers Miles Donahue and Alex Malpass go head-to-head on one of the most fascinating arguments for God’s existence. Miles argues that the extraordinary precision of the universe’s fundamental constants provides powerful evidence for theism. Alex pushes back: could fine-tuning simply expose gaps in our current physics rather than the fingerprints of a designer? An extended Unbelievable? conversation on one of the greatest debates of our time. Subscribe to Miles and Alex on YouTube:

Miles: Miles K. Donahue

Alex: Thoughtology

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Is Christianity really about going to heaven when we die? N.T. Wright thinks we have been telling the biblical story the wrong way round.

Recorded at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, Wright joins John Nelson to explore the argument of his book God’s Homecoming: that the Bible’s great hope is not humanity escaping earth, but God coming to dwell with his renewed creation.

They discuss the Kingdom of God, resurrection, Plato’s influence on Christianity, the Eucharist, Christian nationalism, evangelism, the soul and what happens after death.

Recorded at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, as part of its New Renaissance Project, which seeks to cultivate transformational scholarship, leadership, arts and culture rooted in Christian community and offering the truth, goodness and beauty of the gospel to the wider world.

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Is prayer still relevant in a hyper-digital, secular age? Dr Johannes Hartl – Catholic philosopher, author, and founder of the Augsburg House of Prayer – thinks not only is it relevant, but it may also be the key to our future.

In this wide–ranging conversation, Johannes and Luke explore:

Why even non-believers “pray” more than they realiseHow prayer begins as attention, not just wordsThe problem of divine hiddenness and unanswered prayerWhy transactional prayer misses the heart of Christian spiritualityHow a 24/7 House of Prayer has logged over 100,000 hours of worshipDigital minimalism, smartphones, and why he goes on holiday without a phoneWhy Gen Z men are surprisingly more open to faithThe failure of the promises of secularism and the sexual revolutionDeconstruction, church hurt, and emotionally unhealthy ChristianityWhy we may need a new monasticism and holistic, embodied faith

Whether you’re a sceptic, a deconstructing Christian, or a lifelong believer, this episode offers a challenging and hopeful vision of prayer, community, and cultural renewal.

For Johannes Hartl: https://johanneshartl.org/en/

For Luke Martin: follow on X: https://x.com/luke_s_martin

 

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In this special extended episode of Unbelievable? two leading philosophers of religion go head-to-head over one of Christianity’s most fundamental doctrines: is the Trinity actually biblical - and is it truly orthodox?

Recorded live debate from the Guild Church of St Katherine Cree in the City of London, hosted in partnership with the Unitarian Christian Alliance, Joshua Sijuwade and Dale Tuggy go head-to-head over the nature of God. With opening statements, rebuttals, moderated discussion and audience questions, this special extended edition goes deep into a question at the very heart of historic Christianity: Is the Trinity biblical?

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What if fairy tales reveal more about reality than facts alone? Storyteller, poet and author Amy Scott Robinson joins Luke Martin to explore how imagination, myth and metaphor can illuminate Christian faith. Drawing on C.S. Lewis, G.K. Chesterton, Greek myth, biblical imagery and the enduring logic of fairy tales, Amy argues that stories help us recognise both the brokenness of human nature and our longing for rescue. She explains why art and faith belong together, how stories can carry truth without reducing it to a moral lesson, and why tears, wonder and longing may point beyond themselves. Amy also shares the moving tale of Little Scarface, reflects on the loss of long-form storytelling, and considers whether our AI-shaped culture is rediscovering a hunger for ancient wisdom, beauty, transcendence and truth.

For Luke Martin: follow on X: https://x.com/luke_s_martin

 

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