Talking Theology

Who are the millennials? Why have some of them walked away from the faith, and why have some of them stayed? How do older Christian friends help to maintain youger people's faith? And why should the church talk about both faith and doubt?Ruth Perrin is a research fellow at St John College, Durham, one of the associate staff at King's Church, Durham, and an Associate Tutor within the Free Church Track at Cranmer Hall.For more about Ruth Perrin, see here.

Why do we say that God created out of nothing? Is God a being like any other being, only bigger? Does God relate to creation in the way that I relate to my car? Or is God intimately involved in every moment of our existence? And what difference does it make to see our own existence as a gift?Simon Oliver is the Van Mildert Professor of Divinity in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University, and a residentiary canon of Durham Cathedral. He is the author of Creation: A Guide for the Perplexed.For more about Simon Oliver, see here.

What's prayer all about? How can ancient forms of prayer speak to us today? What's the value in stopping to listen to God? And does formal prayer have to be unemotional and detached, or is there more going on?Jessica Martin is a canon at Ely Cathedral, and was previously an English lecturer at Cambridge University and a parish priest in rural Cambridgeshire.For more about Jessica Martin, see here.

What is a faithful way of living in a culture where Christian faith is not the majority view? Are there any similarities between the early church and today's church that make the issues they work out of relevance to us? Can a world without Facebook, the internet, or Strictly have anything to say to us today? And what has a man called Justin got to contribute?Nick Moore is Director of the MA Programmes at Cranmer Hall.For more about Nick Moore, see here.

Can we really speak of the Old Testament God as a God of love? Why would a God of love speak about his law so much? And why does a God of love endorse violence, both from and towards his own people? And what does love mean anyway?Richard Briggs is Director of Biblical Studies at Cranmer Hall.For more about Richard Briggs, see here.

How many followers do you have on Twitter? Has social media made us all into celebrities? What do celebrities tell us about ourselves? And how do we live faithfully in a world of social media?Pete Ward is Professor of Practical Theology in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.For more about Pete Ward, see here.

Where is God when we suffer? How does the Bible speak into dark times? Should we expect God to resolve our suffering? Or is God at work in ways that perhaps we've not even imagined?Libby Lane was recently appointed as Bishop of Derby.For more about Libby Lane, see here.

Are human rights part of God's mission? How do non-Christians reflect the image of God? Does the parable of the Good Samaritan say more about human rights than we might think? And how does all this speak into how we engage with faith in the public square today?Joel Edwards has served as General Director of the Evangelical Alliance, International Director for the Micah Challenge, and a commissioner with the Equality and Human Rights Commission. He is currently a Visiting Fellow of St John's College in Durham.For more about Joel Edwards, see here.

Why do we give and receive gifts? How is the Apostle Paul's understanding of gift different to that of the world in which he lived? How does the gift of Christ challenge our sense of status and hierarchy? And what might a community of gift look like today?John Barclay is Lightfoot Professor of Divinity in the Department of Theology and Religion at Durham University.For more about John Barclay, see here.

Are Sunday services part of evangelism today? Does your church need to blow its annual budget on a smoke machine and a light show? And how big is the gap between the Book of Acts and the mission of the church today?Miriam Swaffield is the Global Student Mission Leader for Fusion, and a Visiting Fellow of St John's College, Durham. She Tweets at @MiriamSwaff.