I am presently writing a book in the defense of faith and it includes arguments from the likes of Robert Lanza and his theories of consciousness. Biocentrism postulates the primal and essential nature of consciousness and argues that consciousness is not some secondary evolutionary spin-off of dead matter but is, instead, the basis and foundation of matter. Lanza supports his position with real and replicable quantum experiments that have taken into account controls and no matter how you slice or dice those experiments, consciousness determines the behavior of quantum particles.This is not nonsense. It’s a quandary for any theoretical physicist. This is weird stuff that exhibits the same omnipresent characteristics of God! All of a sudden, what was once impossible and thought of as unreal, is experimentally established as very real and foundational to the hard science of physics. What was once inconceivable at any level is now ushered into the realm of fact, and what was once thought of as unthinkable in our larger molecular world has been ushered into the realm of possibility. 

I think so many spiritualist ideas are on the money as their premises are derived from human and spiritual phenomena. Unfortunately, the new-age faction often makes the mistake of discarding God-the “big Kahuna"-the central consciousness of this universe responsible for our ideas of self and qualia and the subjective experience. Taking God into account also explains why we all share the same experiences rather than falling into the new age trap of thinking we’re creating our own individual realities-not so! God creates it all and we’re just spectators.

I am not suggesting man is insignificant as even the Bible says we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” I think I said it best when comparing human biology to a massive star or to the larger cosmos: “The day I feel insignificant is when a star can wake up in the morning, smell the coffee, and exclaim with a sense of satisfaction, “I feel good!” And for all of its size and power, that is something it will never do.”

So where does John Lennox fit in all of this? Thank you John for your analogy concerning the idea that “mechanism is not the same as agency.” Here’s where persons such as Dawkins miss the boat; they are making a category mistake. Thanks to John Lennox’s insight, I will include in my book an illustration showing a man under the hood of a Model-T Ford and exclaiming with confidence, “Why, there’s no Henry Ford in this engine! Any fool can see it’s operating by the rules of internal combustion! Internal combustion is an elegant description of how this car came to be. We need not evoke the name of Henry Ford to explain it-that’s only superfluous nonsense!”

Like you would say John, that’s “silly” and the “mind boggles.” Thank you for pointing out the obvious. It’s such a strong point and one that is far more worthy of intellectual appreciation than the mockery and the ridicule you sometimes receive from the unfaithful. I remember that line from the movie “Dark City” where these aliens were looking into our brains to figure out what made us tick and failed utterly. In the end the main hero in the movie exclaimed, “You were looking in the wrong place.” And with their heads stuck under the hood John, they have neglected to observe that Henry Ford was having tea at the local street cafe: he was not to be found under the hood of some antiquated automobile and neither is God to be found in the matter of this world-he transcends all of that. Of everything I have read in your books, this idea strikes me with such power. It’s a remarkable observation and one that’s even inspired! Thank you!

John Lennox, what a calming voice amongst such a hostile tide. For a believer like myself, the logic of mathematics when seen to exist, even outside of human capabilities to comprehend it, speaks volumes of the problem of human vanity to copyright knowledge as belonging to human intelligence alone. Really i dont like personal assaults on people even verbal, but I think Dawkins is just a “wanna be” Darwin. He epitomises human vanity and is very jealous of God indeed. John expressed well that faith is not something that replaces a lack of knowledge but that it give prominence to knowledge existing exclusive of our intervention or ability to comprehend it. To the discerning that was beautiful John. Here’s to negative 1. Mark.

Hello John Lennox.  Today I listened to an interview with you by Rachel Kohn and I enjoyed listening to you both very much. Some things fit in with my own ways, some don’t, but that makes things more interesting. I was especially interested to find that you are passionate about Mathematics and Religion, as I am also passionate about these two, and I believe that Mathematics and Religion are totally intertwined, as are all the sciences.  In fact everything manifest is intertwined with religion - without it is incomplete.
When you got to the bit about meat eating/vegetarianism I remembered Edmond Szekely’s translation of the Essene Gospel of Peace, and have forwarded an except from it.
I would be interested to hear your comment regarding this.
Regards Margaret Bulanyiask12

An excerpt from “THE ESSENE GOSPEL OF PEACE”
translated from the Third century Aramaic Manuscript by Edmond Bordeaux SZEKELY

And Jesus answered “It was said to them of old time ‘All beasts that move upon the earth, all the fish of the sea, and all the fowl of the earth are given into thy power.’ I tell you truly, of all creatures living upon the earth, God created only man after his image. Wherefore beasts are for man, and not man for beasts.  You do not therefore transgress the law if you kill the wild beast to save your brother’s life. For I tell you truly, man is more than the beasts. But he who kills a beast without a cause, though the beast attack him not, through lust for slaughter, or for its flesh, or for its hide, or yet for its tusks evil is the deed which he does, for he is turned into a wild beast himself. Wherefore is his end also as the end of the wild beasts.
Then another said: “Moses, the greatest in Israel, suffered our forefathers to eat the flesh of clean beasts, and forbade only the flesh of unclean beasts. Why, therefore, do you forbid us the flesh of all beasts? Which law comes from God? That of Moses, or your law?”
And Jesus answered: “God gave, by Moses, ten commandments to your forefathers. ‘These commandments are hard,’ said your forefathers, and could not keep them.  When Moses saw this, he had compassion on his people, and would not that they perish. And then he gave them ten times ten commandments, less hard, that they might follow them. I tell you truly, if your forefathers had been able to keep the ten commandments of God, Moses would never had need of his ten times ten commandments. For he whose feet are strong as the mountain of Zion, needs no crutches; but he whose limbs do shake, gets further having crutches, than without them. And Moses said to the Lord: ‘My heart is filled with sorrow, for my people will be lost. For they are without knowledge, and are not able to understand thy commandments. They are as little children who cannot yet understand their father’s words. Suffer, Lord, that I give them other laws, that they may not perish. If they may not be with you Lord, let them not be against thee; that they may sustain themselves, and when the time has come, and they are ripe for thy words, reveal to them thy laws.’ For that did Moses break the two tablets of stone whereon were written the ten commandments, and he gave them ten by ten in their stead. And of those ten by ten the Scribes and Pharisees have made a hundred times ten commandments. And they have laid unbearable burdens on your shoulders, that they themselves do not carry. For the more nigh are the commandments to God, the less do we need; and the farther they are from God, then the more do we need. Wherefore are the laws of the Pharisees and Scribes are innumerable; the laws of the Son of Man seven; of the angels three; and of God one.
“Therefore, I teach you only those laws which you can understand, that you may become men, and follow the seven laws of the Son of Man. Then will the angels also reveal their laws to you, that God’s holy spirit may descend upon you, and lead you to his law”.
And all were astonished at his wisdom, and asked him: “Continue, Master, and teach us all the laws which we can receive.”
And Jesus continued: “God commanded your forefathers: ‘Thou shalt not kill.’ But their heart was hardened and they killed. Then Moses desired that at least they should not kill men, and he suffered them to kill beasts. And then the heart of your forefathers was hardened yet more, and they killed men and beasts likewise. But I do say to you: Kill neither men, nor beasts, nor yet the food which goes into your mouth. For if you eat living food, the same will quicken you, but if you kill your food, the dead food will kill you also. For life comes only from life, and from death comes always death. For everything which kills your foods, kills your bodies also. And everything that kills your bodies, kills your souls also. And your bodies become what your foods are, even as your spirits, likewise, become what your thoughts are. Therefore eat not anything which fire, or frost, or water has destroyed. For burned, frozen, and rotted foods, will burn, freeze, and rot your body also.  Be not like the foolish husbandman who sowed in his ground cooked, and frozen, and rotten seeds.  And the autumn came, and his fields bore nothing. And great was his distress. But be like that husbandman who sowed in his field living seed, and whose field bore living ears of wheat, paying a hundredfold for the seeds which he planted. For I tell you truly, live only by the fire of life, and prepare not your foods with the fire of death, which kills your foods,your bodies and your souls also.”

I respect john lENNOx views and profound enthusiasm. He sees God the way I never was taught. The god he has faith in is different from the god most people are taught. We were taught a creator, who made us out of immense love, and who, for this very reason , punished us abominably for eons past aND TO COME,ON ACCOUNT OF A SIN OF PRIDE. THE REAL PROBLEM IS THAT THERE JUST COULD NOT BE ANY SIN possible emanating from A CREATURE just CREATED BY THIS FABULOUS GOD and in his/her own image. And, by the way, the image is frequently atrocious. tHE gOD I WAS TAUGHT CAME BEFORE ANY EVIL AND THERE COULD NOT, ABSOLUTELY NOT, BE any EVIL, IN ANY CONJUNCTION WITH GOD. That, I was taught. When I ask theologians whether god may choose evil the answer, invariably, is a vehement NO! Which leads me to conclude that god has gifted his/her creatures with greater freedom than he/she disposes of. 
i HAVE HOWEVER ENJOYED jOHN lENNOX’ ‘POETRY OF GOD’. iT MAKES ME WISH THERE WERE A GOD BUT it DOES NOT DRAW ME IN BELIEVING that THERE IS ONE.

This was truly a marvellous interview; as Dr Lennox noted, part of the reason was the highly insightful questions and comments by the interviewer herself. I think she is on to something when she brings up our subjective experiences; let’s face it, we live our lives ‘subjectively’, and the kind of knowledge which science provides is by definition limited to observable and measurable phenomena, which is not always very satisfying to inquiring minds; this is why non-scientific attitudes are found so frequently.  Also I found the discussion of faith quite interesting- my suspicion is that most religious people have their own personal experiences with the spiritual which keep them believing. How many of us believe in relativity or evolution based on personal experience? We have faith in the scientific method and the presuppositions of science, and when all is said and done we are only taught to believe in the conclusions of science. All in all a very worthwhile interview.