Coming to Terms with Loss

Loss runs through human life, and it is one of the hardest things to cope with. At the very beginning of life there are times when we feel cared for by one or both of our parents, but then they go away and leave us alone. At first we have no understanding of why that happens, and no ability to do anything about it. Bewilderment and helplessness are intertwined with our experience of loss from the outset.

We have to cope with so many losses through life, and they are very varied. People who were important to us move away or lose interest in us; or their circumstances change in some fundamental way, so that they don’t seem the same people who we once depended on. Marriage may give some stability for a time, but partners can change over time, just like anyone else, and eventually they die (unless we die first).

Read the full article on my website.

Fraser Watts discusses his new book – a 21st Century debate on Science and Religion.

The topic of science and/or religion is one that is debated the world over. From my point of view, and indeed that of my co-authors, this question is central to the search for truth, and the proper relationship between science and religion.

As Alfred Pritz puts in his opening foreword, the search for truth is interpersonal and personal, because we exchange our views and knowledge on what we call truth, but find that it lies in the personal, subjective world.

Read the full article on my blog.

Darkness and Light in the Story of Jesus

One of the biggest puzzles is how so many things in our lives are neither wholly good nor wholly bad, but some confusing mixture of the two. It is difficult to hold onto this complexity and there is a strong tendency to simplify things and to see only the good or only the bad. That is what some psychologists call ‘splitting’.

These issues arise in religion as well as in our personal lives, and I can illustrate this from the story of Jesus’ life, and how that is celebrated through the Christian year. When you look carefully, all the key stories are a complex mixture of light and darkness, though there is a tendency to simplify them and to see only one side of the picture.

Read the full article on my website.

Fraser Watts on the big questions of life… ‘Who am I?’

Have you ever asked yourself ‘Who am I?’

If you have, then you’re certainly not alone. But if you haven’t, you might well be pondering it now…

The question of identity is one that is asked often, and there is a belief that people who ask it are typically struggling with their identity. That these ‘souls’ are in fact a bit lost and seeking a definitiveanswer to – quite literally – help them to define themselves. But you don’t have to be struggling with your identity to ask it either.

Read the full article on my blog.

Fraser Watts: How behaviour and environment could affect your lifespan?

I was recently cited in an article on minnpost.com which discussed epigenetics and cited some of my comments from the Religion, Society, and the Science of Life Conference at Oxford University back in July.

In her recent article, Sharon Schmickle notes how a Minneapolis life insurance company GWG Life, is collecting and analysing saliva samples for epigenetic markers in order to identify how an individual might beat his or her chronological age and either live longer or indeed die younger than predicted.

Read the full article on my website.

Darkness and Light are Intertwined Deep Within Us

Many people have mixed feelings about themselves. Of course some people have a very dark view of themselves, especially when they are depressed. Other people think highly of themselves and can’t see anything wrong. But most of us see both good and bad in ourselves; sometimes it is hard to see the connection between the two, hard to understand how the same person could do both good and bad things.

Read the article in full on my blog.

Issues in Science and Theology: Do Emotions Shape the World?

This book examines emotions and emotional wellbeing from a rich variety of theological, philosophical and scientific and therapeutic perspectives.

To experience emotion is part of being human; but what are emotions? How can theology, philosophy and the natural sciences unpack the nature and content of emotions? This volume is based on contributions to the 15th European Conference on Science and Theology held in Assisi, Italy.

Read the full book review on my blog.