The most complete, compelling, and accessible series on Cosmos, Consciousness and Meaning ever produced for television is now available online.
Closer To Truth explores fundamental issues of universe, brain/mind, religion, meaning and purpose through intimate, candid conversations with leading scientists, philosophers, scholars, theologians and creative thinkers of all kinds. The shows are a rich visual experience, shot entirely on location in high definition with multiple cameras generating rich production values.
Each season, hosted by Robert Lawrence Kuhn, consists of 13 episodes on Cosmos, Consciousness, and Meaning. Episode titles are listed below.
Now available: Seasons 10-19
Coming soon: Seasons 1-9
SEASON 19
- #1913 – Salvation – A Philosophical Inquiry It’s intended as ultimate purpose: salvation means eternal life with God. For believers, what actually happens, what kind of life? For non-believers, what can we learn about how religion works? Contributors: Oliver Crisp, Eleonore Stump, Alan Torrance, N.T. Wright
- #1912 – Atonement – A Philosophical Inquiry Can atonement absolve sin? For believers, how could The Atonement work? What’s the process? For non-believers, what does The Atonement say about the kind of God that supposedly designed it? Contributors: Eleonore Stump, Alan Torrance, Oliver Crisp, N.T. Wright
- #1911 – The Incarnation – A Philosophical Inquiry It’s a staggering idea: God became flesh. Why would the Creator become human? For believers, how could Divine and Human natures interact? For non-believers, how do beliefs reflect the psyche? Contributors: Ian McFarland, Timothy Pawl, N.T. Wright, John Hick
- #1910 – The Trinity – A Philosophical Inquiry It seems the ultimate riddle: How could One God be Three Persons? How could One be Three? Or Three be One? And why three? Non-believers and believers can both enjoy the logic and linguistics. Contributors: Peter van Inwagen, Oliver Crisp, Michael Rea, Brian Leftow, Richard Swinburne
- #1909 – Jesus as God – A Philosophical Inquiry Why the astonishing claim that Jesus is God? Not like God. Not representing God. But literally God? One need not be a Christian, or even a theist, to appreciate the arguments. Contributors: Sarah Coakley, N.T. Wright, Oliver Crisp, Eleonore Stump, C. Stephen Evans, Ian McFarland
- #1908 – Epistemology: How Can We Know God? Can humans have knowledge of God? Between humans and God, between finite and infinite, there seems an unbridgeable gap. So what can it mean to “know God”? There are multiple meanings. Contributors: Robert Audi, Meghan Sullivan, David Bentley Hart, Menachem Fisch, Bas van Fraassen
- #1907 – Why Anything at All II? It’s the ultimate puzzle. It’s the haunting question. Why is there “something” rather than “nothing”? It seems impenetrable, uncrackable, unfathomable. But are there ways?Contributors: Tim Maudlin, Mario Livio, George Ellis, David Bentley Hart
- #1906 – What Exists II? What’s the ultimate stuff of reality? What’s absolutely fundamental and non-reducible — the fewest number of categories within which every specific thing, of every general kind, can be classified? Contributors: Barry Loewer, David Albert, Luke Barnes, Raymond Tallis, George Ellis
- #1905 – What’s Strong Emergence? Here’s the claim: each level of the scientific hierarchy — physics, chemistry, biology, psychology — has its own special laws that can never be explained by deeper laws (physics). How can this be? Contributors: George Ellis, David Albert, Barry Loewer, Tim Maudlin
- #1904 – Is the Anthropic Principle Significant? Here’s the claim: conditions of the universe relate to the presence of observers. Does the Anthropic Principle convey deep insights? Or thwart science? For sure, it’s often misunderstood and controversial. Contributors: Bernard Carr, Pedro Ferreira, John Peacock, Luke Barnes, Abraham Loeb
- #1903 – What’s Fine-Tuning in Physics? Why do the “constants of nature” — masses of subatomic particles and strengths of forces like gravity and electromagnetism — have the values they do? Does fine-tuning “cry out” for explanation? Contributors: Bernard Carr, Luke Barnes, Geraint Lewis, George Ellis, Abraham Loeb
- #1902 – What’s Fine-Tuning in Cosmology? Here’s the claim: cosmic conditions that allow complex structures — galaxies, stars, planets, people — depend on a few “constants of nature” lying within tight ranges of values. But is fine-tuning valid? Contributors: Geraint Lewis, Luke Barnes, Fred Adams, Joseph Silk, Abraham Loeb
- #1901 – What is Philosophy of Cosmology? We search deepest levels of cosmic reality, the big picture of the puzzle of the universe — beginning, size, structure, future, far future. We seek significance in cosmology, if there’s any to be. Contributors: Barry Loewer, Mario Livio, George Ellis, David Albert
SEASON 18
SEASON 17
SEASON 16
SEASON 15
SEASON 14
SEASON 13
SEASON 12
SEASON 11
SEASON 10
SEASON 9
SEASON 8
SEASON 7
SEASON 6
SEASON 5
SEASON 4
SEASON 3
SEASON 2
SEASON 1
Link: www.closertotruth.com
(Recommended by Janet Cornwell, H.W., m.)