Christian humanists
Christian humanism regards humanist principles like universal human dignity, individual freedom, and the importance of happiness as essential and principal or even exclusive components of the teachings of Jesus. Proponents of the term trace the concept to the Renaissance or patristic period, linking their beliefs to the scholarly movement also called 'humanism'.
9 episodes
Episodes in this category also belong to the following categories:
Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss Bonhoeffer's ideas about Christian ethics, the role of the Church in a secular world, and his attempts to overthrow Hitler.
27 September 2018
Featuring: Stephen Plant, Eleanor McLaughlin, Tom Greggs
Erasmus
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the life and work of the Dutch humanist scholar Desiderius Erasmus, one of the most significant figures of the Renaissance.
9 February 2012
Featuring: Diarmaid MacCulloch, Eamon Duffy, Jill Kraye
John Wesley and Methodism
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the difference John Wesley made during the Christian Revival of the 18th Century, developing Methodism into a major movement around the world
10 December 2020
Featuring: Stephen Plant, Eryn White, William Gibson
ReligionAnglican saintsChristian humanistsChristian radicalsLutheran saintsPeople celebrated in the Lutheran liturgical calendarFounders of religionsEnglish abolitionistsAlumni of Christ Church, OxfordEnglish evangelicalsEnglish pamphleteersFounders of English schools and collegesGerman–English translators18th-century Anglican theologians18th-century English diarists18th-century evangelicalsChristian vegetariansChristianity in OxfordEnglish Anglican theologiansEnglish sermon writersTranslators of the Bible into EnglishKierkegaard
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the rich and radical ideas of Soren Kierkegaard, often called the father of Existentialism.
20 March 2008
Featuring: Jonathan Rée, Clare Carlisle, John Lippitt
PhilosophySocial philosophersOntologistsPhilosophy writersPhilosophers of literaturePhilosophers of mindPhilosophers of religionMetaphysiciansPhilosophers of cultureEpistemologistsAphoristsMetaphilosophersChristian humanistsPhilosophers of loveExistentialistsPhilosophers of psychologyChristian radicalsPhilosophers of artChristian ethicists19th-century pseudonymous writersPeople celebrated in the Lutheran liturgical calendarChristian poets19th-century male writersPhilosophers of deathIrony theorists19th-century essayists19th-century deaths from tuberculosisExistentialist theologiansUniversity of Copenhagen alumniMilton
Melvyn Bragg examines the literary and political career of the 17th century poet John Milton, examining work such as Paradise Lost as well as his role as propagandist during the English Civil War.
7 March 2002
Featuring: John Carey, Lisa Jardine, Blair Worden
CultureSocial philosophersWriters about activism and social changeEnglish male poetsEnlightenment philosophersSonneteersCritics of the Catholic ChurchEnglish essayistsChristian humanists17th-century English male writersEnglish non-fiction writersLiteracy and society theoristsEnglish male dramatists and playwrightsEpic poets17th-century English poetsLiterary theorists17th-century English writersAnglican poetsChristian poetsPeople from the City of London17th-century writers in LatinRhetoric theorists17th-century English dramatists and playwrightsMale essayistsMetaphor theoristsWriters from London17th-century English philosophersEnglish republicansEnglish political philosophersNeoclassical writersPamphleteersEnglish writers with disabilitiesEnglish educational theoristsCalvinist and Reformed poetsMythopoeic writersAnglican philosophersBritish free speech activistsBlind writersDeaths from kidney failure in the United KingdomEnglish Anglican theologians17th-century English educatorsRhetoriciansBritish philosophers of religionEnglish DissentersAlumni of Christ's College, CambridgeBlind poetsEnglish theologiansAnti-Catholicism in the United KingdomMontaigne
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the life and work of Michel de Montaigne. Best known for his influential Essays, Montaigne is regarded as the father of modern sceptical thought.
25 April 2013
Featuring: David Wootton, Terence Cave, Felicity Green
Pascal
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the life and work of the French polymath Blaise Pascal.
19 September 2013
Featuring: David Wootton, Michael Moriarty, Michela Massimi
CultureAphoristsChristian humanistsCatholic philosophersCritics of atheismFrench physicistsPeople with hypochondriasisRoman Catholic mysticsFrench Roman Catholic writersConverts to Roman CatholicismChristian apologists17th-century Christian mysticsCartesianismFrench mathematicians, French fluid dynamicists, French probability theoristsSimone Weil
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the French philosopher and social activist Simone Weil. Admired by Albert Camus and Iris Murdoch, she achieved a great deal in her short life.
15 November 2012
Featuring: Beatrice Han-Pile, Stephen Plant, David Levy
PhilosophyPhilosophers of religionJewish philosophersChristian humanistsWriters from ParisFrench political philosophersChristian radicals20th-century French philosophersCritics of work and the work ethicFrench women philosophersMarxist theoristsFrench philosophers of scienceWomen mysticsFrench feministsFrench socialistsÉcole Normale Supérieure alumni20th-century French women writersFrench Resistance membersFrench communists20th-century deaths from tuberculosisLycée Henri-IV alumniPlatonistsAnti-Stalinist leftCritics of MarxismConverts to Christianity from JudaismDominican mysticsTuberculosis deaths in EnglandFrench anarchists, French anti-fascists, French anti-capitalistsNonviolence advocates, Christian anarchistsWyclif and the Lollards
Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the medieval philosopher and theologian John Wyclif and his followers, the Lollards.
16 June 2011
Featuring: Anthony Kenny, Anne Hudson, Rob Lutton
ReligionAnglican saintsCritics of the Catholic ChurchChristian humanistsChristian radicalsPeople excommunicated by the Catholic ChurchEnglish evangelicalsDamnatio memoriaeEnglish Reformation14th-century writers in LatinTranslators of the Bible into EnglishTranslators to English14th-century English writersRoman Catholic biblical scholars, Proto-Protestants