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Current models of how our universe came to be are based on a few assumptions the brilliant physicist-genius Albert Einstein made about the universe - things he could not finally physically test or demonstrate.  In order to do his calculations, Einstein simply assumed that matter would be evenly distributed throughout the universe and that the universe would look the same in any direction or location.  If Einstein's assumptions are indeed correct, astrophysicists and cosmologists calculate that the largest structures we should expect to see in the universe would not exceed 1.2 billion light years in size.  But discoveries in recent decades have posed a significant challenge to Einstein's idea of homogeneity and isotropy, with several structures far and away exceeding the the 1.2 billion-light-year limit.  Are these cosmic superstructures for real or just  anomalies? Come and see! Links: Press conference with Alexia Lopez, a PhD student at the University of Lancashire in the UK who has recently discovered two such structures. https://www.youtube.com/live/86Ps7vE6JHI?feature=shared Wayne's updated article on things too big for the Big Bang.https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2017/11/15/structures-too-big-for-the-big-bang/ Dan further ponders the theological implications in his blog about things too big for the Big Bang. https://thestoryofthecosmos.substack.com/p/are-there-things-just-too-big-for Good Heavens! is a production of Watchman Fellowship, Inc. For more information on apologetics, cults, world religions, and other non-Christian ideologies and spiritual practices, visit our website at http://www.watchman.org Check out Watchman's main podcast, Apologetics Profile.  https://www.podomatic.com/podcasts/jwalker55293 Original Too Big for the Big Bang Good Heavens! episode from 2017. Please excuse Dan's rather juvenile introduction on this one! https://goodheavens.podbean.com/e/good-heavens-are-there-things-too-big-for-the-big-bang/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.  

"What are the chances of that happening?" we often say or hear whenever something remarkable or out of the ordinary takes place. When we use that phrase, we are invoking the design inference, even though we may not exactly call it that. Our guest again this week, philosopher, mathematician and senior fellow at Discovery Institute's Center for Science and Culture Dr. William Dembski shares with us how his more formalized design inference is indeed rooted in simple, everyday inferences we all make. But he also how it fits into the laws of probability, information theory, and specified complexity as well, making it a rigorous formal argument applicable for intuiting design in the physical cosmos and biology. We further discuss the new second edition of his 1998 landmark book The Design Inference. A noted mathematician and philosopher, William A. Dembski is a Founding and Senior Fellow with Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture and a Distinguished Fellow with the Institute’s Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence. His most recent books relating to intelligent design include Being as Communion: A Metaphysics of Information (2014), Evolutionary Informatics (2017, co-authored with Robert Marks and Winston Ewert), and the second edition of The Design Inference (2023, co-authored with Winston Ewert).   Bill's Personal Website - https://billdembski.com/ Book: Second Edition of https://www.discovery.org/store/product/the-design-inference/ Free Four-Page Profiles from Watchman Fellowship! https://www.watchman.org/scientism/ProfileScientism.pdf https://www.watchman.org/Naturalism/ProfileNaturalism.pdf https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/atheismprofile.pdf   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

For centuries, Western natural philosophy, theology, the scientific tradition widely accepted that the physical cosmos and life within it was the creation of God. Arguably one of the most influential works which usurped the belief in God as the Creator was Charles Darwin's 1859 publication On the Origin of Species. It undoubtedly provided many with the intellectual framework for atheism, naturalism, and materialism. But in the late 20th and early 21st century, the concept of intelligent design has made a cultural comeback. This week and next we sit down with Dr. William Dembski, one of the leading founders and proponents of the Intelligent Design movement, to discuss his new second edition of his landmark 1998 book, The Design Inference.  A noted mathematician and philosopher, William A. Dembski is a Founding and Senior Fellow with Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture and a Distinguished Fellow with the Institute’s Walter Bradley Center for Natural and Artificial Intelligence. His most recent books relating to intelligent design include Being as Communion: A Metaphysics of Information (2014), Evolutionary Informatics (2017, co-authored with Robert Marks and Winston Ewert), and the second edition of The Design Inference (2023, co-authored with Winston Ewert). Bill's Personal Website - https://billdembski.com/ Book: Second Edition of https://www.discovery.org/store/product/the-design-inference/ Free Four-Page Profiles from Watchman Fellowship! https://www.watchman.org/scientism/ProfileScientism.pdf https://www.watchman.org/Naturalism/ProfileNaturalism.pdf https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/atheismprofile.pdf   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

Telescopes certainly have opened our eyes to the wonders of the heavens. For Christians images from the deepest regions of the universe only serve to confirm what David in the 19th Psalm declares. The heavens are telling of the glory of God and the skies proclaim His handiwork. But the big institutional astronomical organizations that design and build modern sophisticated telescopes seemed to have lost this particular focus. While the lenses and mirrors reveal the wonders of the cosmos in vivid details, many ironically can no longer see how it all connects to the glory of God.  Here on part two Wayne and Dan chat about some of the bigger telescope discoveries and the implications of having your lenses and mirrors out of whack. So come and refocus with us! Soli Deo Gloria! Good Heavens! is a production of Watchman Fellowship, Inc., Arlington, Texas. For more information about our ministry, visit Watchman.org. Books mentioned in these episodes. Ideas and conclusions in these books do not necessarily reflect the views of Watchman Fellowship or Good Heavens!   Tycho & Kepler https://kitty-ferguson.com/tycho-and-kepler/  The History of the Telescopehttps://www.abebooks.com/9780486432656/History-Telescope-Dover-Books-Astronomy-0486432653/plp  The Stars: The Definitive Visual Guide to the Cosmos  by Dorling Kindersley https://www.amazon.com/Stars-Definitive-Visual-Guide-Cosmos/dp/1465453407/ Wayne and Dan's co-authored book The Story of the Cosmoshttps://thestoryofthecosmos.com/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.  

The telescope has revolutionized the way we understand the universe. But in the four centuries since its invention, it seems astronomy science today has lost the original focus of those Christians who first laid eyes on the heavens through their spyglasses.  On the next two episodes of Good Heavens! Wayne and Dan take a peek back on some of the highlights and discoveries of the earliest telescopes. Here on part one we chat about who really invented the telescope, what the basic kinds of telescopes are today, and what sort of discoveries had been made with this revolutionary new device.  Come and See!  Good Heavens! is a production of Watchman Fellowship, Inc., Arlington, Texas. For more information about our ministry, visit Watchman.org.  Books mentioned in these episodes. Ideas and conclusions in these books do not necessarily reflect the views of Watchman Fellowship or Good Heavens!  Tycho & Kepler https://kitty-ferguson.com/tycho-and-kepler/  The History of the Telescopehttps://www.abebooks.com/9780486432656/History-Telescope-Dover-Books-Astronomy-0486432653/plp  The Stars: The Definitive Visual Guide to the Cosmos  by Dorling Kindersley https://www.amazon.com/Stars-Definitive-Visual-Guide-Cosmos/dp/1465453407/ Wayne and Dan's co-authored book The Story of the Cosmoshttps://thestoryofthecosmos.com/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

While Wayne and Dan are certainly no professional cosmologists, they believe that scientists who study the universe need a bigger conceptual boat. There are "monsters" out there in the deep that don't seem to fit the current Big Bang dingy models of how the universe came into existence and slowly developed over 13.8 billion years.  One astrophysicist has suggested the universe is more like 26 billion years old. Others believe there is no need to change the current age. What is the average person walking down the street to think of all this?  As we learned last week, there was that curious star named Methuselah which seems to be older than the universe itself. But how could that be? One thing Methuselah tells us is that the ways in which astronomers and cosmologists measure the age and distance of objects in the universe is somewhat elastic and subjective. And now, with new images coming down from the James Webb Space Telescope, it seems that the problems with measurements in the sciences of the heavens are once again coming into focus. Just how old is everything? Does anyone really know? Are explanations for how the universe came to be about to be overturned?  Come and see!Dan's article on Naturalism https://www.watchman.org/Naturalism/ProfileNaturalism.pdfArticle by Luke Barnes and Daniel Ray on Scientism https://www.watchman.org/scientism/ProfileScientism.pdfIs the universe 13.8 or 26.7 Billion Years old? An article from the cosmologist who believes the universe is over 26 billion years oldWayne's article on the James Webb Space Telescope (with pictures) https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2022/08/25/images-from-the-james-webb-space-telescope/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

If you are anywhere in the vicinity of Wayne and Dan's generation, you probably have at least heard of the band Chicago. They have a few catchy tunes with some interesting titles, like 25 or 6 to 4 and Does Anyone Really Know What Time It Is? What do these songs have anything to do with the universe? Plenty! If Chicago were writing new songs today, they might do a remake of 25 or 6 to 4 and call it 26 or 13 Point 8. Turns out the age of the universe is up for discussion once again, raised by images of deep-space objects taken by the James Webb Space Telescope and a study published recently suggesting that the universe is some 26 billion years old, almost double the current age of 13.8 billion years. As Chicago sings in in 25 or 6 to 4, "Dancing lights against the sky...Staring blindly into space...Wondering how much I can take...Searching for something to say..." So as you're walking down the street one day, and someone comes up to you and asks you what the age of the universe is, you can ask them "Does anybody really know how old it is?" then share our podcast with them! That would be a timeless courtesy Wayne and Dan would both greatly appreciate! So if you don't know where you are, can't see past the next step, or have no time to look around and are being pushed and shoved by people, come and take a break with Wayne and Dan as they help give you the big picture of what it all means, all for the glory of God in Christ (1 Cor. 10:31). Dan's article on Naturalism https://www.watchman.org/Naturalism/ProfileNaturalism.pdf Article by Luke Barnes and Daniel Ray on Scientism https://www.watchman.org/scientism/ProfileScientism.pdf  Is the universe 13.8 or 26.7 Billion Years old?https://bigthink.com/starts-with-a-bang/universe-13-8-or-26-7-billion-years/ Wayne's article on the James Webb Space Telescope (with pictures)https://creationanswers.net/answersblog/2022/08/25/images-from-the-james-webb-space-telescope/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

Why does science explore the universe? If the universe has no ultimate purpose, why study it? But how can science know that the universe has no ultimate purpose? Can carbon from an asteroid really tell us where we came from and what our place in the universe really is?  Recently, some 250 grams of carbon and other minerals gathered from Bennu, a near-earth asteroid, landed safely in a Utah desert. What can these elements really tell us about who we are and where we came from? Is debris from an asteroid really the place to look for answers to these questions?  https://science.nasa.gov/mission/osiris-rex/ https://www.npr.org/2023/09/24/1201386042/watch-live-nasa-sends-an-asteroid-sample-back-to-earth   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

You have likely at least seen pictures or videos of solar eclipses, perhaps you have been fortunate enough to see one as it happens. Either way, eclipses are quite a dramatic and awe-inspiring sight to behold.    What do they mean? Anything? For non-Christians and those who hold to a completely materialistic view of the universe, sadly no. These events, while breathtaking, are not anything purposeful. They were not intended by anyone or anything. They are just chance alignments with no rhyme or reason for their occurrences. Science can tell us quite a bit about the numbers, forces, and elemental particles that comprise such a glorious arrangement, but science has no explanation for what it all means.  But for Christians, these celestial events are reminders and declarations of God's glory. And if you happen to live in parts of Oregon, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, or Texas, you will be in for a real celestial treat - an annular eclipse will be happening overhead Saturday, October 14, 2023. You don't want to miss it! Come along with Wayne and Dan as they talk about eclipses in general and how they see them point the way to the glory of God in Christ.   Eclipse Resource links from NASA including how and where to see the annular eclipse:  https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2023/ https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2023/where-when/   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

If there are highly intelligent beings out there in the cosmos somewhere and they have perfected overcoming the impossible odds and dangers of interstellar and intergalactic travel, why do they always crash here on Earth? And is it even possible for such beings to defy the known laws of physics? On part two of our conversation with astrophysicist and author Dr. Hugh Ross of Reasons to Believe, we finish up our conversation about aliens, UFOs, and UAPs, and the problems they pose for a naturalistic worldview.  We also discuss some of the recent findings of the James Webb Space Telescope and how Dr. Ross interprets some of these discoveries in light of Scripture and modern cosmology. A fascinating chat you don't want to miss! Be praying for Dan. At the end of September, he will be traveling to the worldwide Mecca of all alien and UFO phenomena, Roswell, New Mexico. Dan will be handing out fliers about the podcasts and hopefully start some meaningful conversations with people he meets there! Astrophysicist and author Hugh Ross is founder and senior scholar of Reasons to Believe, an organization that researches and communicates how discoveries about nature harmonize with the words of the Bible. His books include The Creator and the Cosmos, Why the Universe Is the Way It Is, Improbable Planet, and Designed to the Core. https://www.Reasons.org  Also, be sure to check out many of our other helpful resources on UFOs and aliens! Podcast episode on ancient aliens: Good Heavens! Ancient Aliens? No. Watchman Fellowship https://www.watchman.org Wayne's article on ancient aliens: https://creationanswers.net/reviews/ancientaliens_pseudoarch.htm Dan's article about "Alien Theology": https://thestoryofthecosmos.substack.com/p/alien-theology Watchman Fellowship profiles on alien cults: Heaven's Gate https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/heavensgateprofile.pdf Raelians https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/raelianprofile.pdf Urantia Book https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/urantiaprofile.pdf Previous Good Heavens! episodes with Gary Bates on UFOs Part One: https://goodheavens.podbean.com/e/aliens-ufos-and-the-bible-part-1-with-gary-bates/ Part Two: https://goodheavens.podbean.com/e/aliens-ufos-and-the-bible-part-2-with-gary-bates/ Daniel’s interview with Sasha Sagan, the daughter of the late planetary astronomer Carl Sagan A Conversation with Sasha Sagan https://youtu.be/0vQYDLeecN8   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.

In case you have not been following the news in the recent months, there has been a resurgence of interest in UFOs, UAPs (Unidentified Aerial Phenomena), and advanced intelligent beings from other dimensions or worlds visiting us. There has also been talk of "non-human biologics", allegedly the remains of the "pilots" of crashed UFOs and UAPs being secretly held by our government. What are these things? How as Christians can we make sense of the claims being made once more by ufologists and those convinced aliens are among us? What is the evidence? On the next two episodes of this special combined Good Heavens! and Apologetics Profile we sit down with astrophysicist and author Dr. Hugh Ross of Reasons to Believe to talk about his biblically informative 2002 co-authored book on UFOs, UAPs, and aliens Lights in the Sky and Little Green Men. Astrophysicist and author Hugh Ross is founder and senior scholar of Reasons to Believe, an organization that researches and communicates how discoveries about nature harmonize with the words of the Bible. His books include The Creator and the Cosmos, Why the Universe Is the Way It Is, Improbable Planet, and Designed to the Core. https://www.Reasons.org Be sure to check out our other podcast episodes and helpful resources on aliens! Podcast episode on ancient aliens: Good Heavens! Ancient Aliens? No. Watchman Fellowship https://www.watchman.org Wayne article on ancient aliens: https://creationanswers.net/reviews/ancientaliens_pseudoarch.htm Dan's article about "Alien Theology": https://thestoryofthecosmos.substack.com/p/alien-theology Watchman Fellowship profiles on alien cults: Heaven's Gate https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/heavensgateprofile.pdf Raelians https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/raelianprofile.pdf Urantia Book https://www.watchman.org/profiles/pdf/urantiaprofile.pdf Previous Good Heavens! episodes with Gary Bates on UFOs Part One: https://goodheavens.podbean.com/e/aliens-ufos-and-the-bible-part-1-with-gary-bates/ Part Two: https://goodheavens.podbean.com/e/aliens-ufos-and-the-bible-part-2-with-gary-bates/ Daniel’s interview with Sasha Sagan, the daughter of the late planetary astronomer Carl Sagan A Conversation with Sasha Sagan https://youtu.be/0vQYDLeecN8   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.  

Be sure to catch the Perseid Meteor Shower this weekend (Aug. 12-13, 2023) , weather permitting! If the weather is bad or you can't see them, however, hopefully this episode will be the next best thing! What is a meteor shower, anyway? What do they mean? Where can you see them? Wayne and Dan attempt to answer these and other burning questions about this weekend's Perseid fireworks! Come and see!  Wayne's article on comets.   Dan's article on the Perseids.    Previous Good Heavens! Episodes on Meteors and Comets Meteors (Sept. 2021) Comets Part 1 (Jan 2021)   Podbean enables our podcast to be on Apple Podcasts and other major podcast platforms.  To support Good Heavens! on Podbean as a patron, you can use the Podbean app, or go to https://patron.podbean.com/goodheavens.  This goes to Wayne Spencer. If you would like to give to the ministry of Watchman Fellowship or to Daniel Ray, you can donate at https://www.watchman.org/daniel. Donations to Watchman are tax deductible.