Has Psychiatry Silenced God? (2014 Event)

Throughout history, divine intervention has influenced great artists, thinkers and leaders, and the voice of God is a distinct and separate presence in the minds of many people today. Author and former Bishop of Edinburgh Richard Holloway leads this discussion with writer Sara Maitland and psychiatrist and theologian Chris Cook to explore how religious beliefs and creative inspiration define our consciousness. This event, recorded live at the 2014 Edinburgh International Book Festival, was part of the Festival’s Conversations with Ourselves series of events presented in association with the University of Durham and with the support of the Wellcome Trust.

Loading the player... if your browser supports audio and video it should appear in a few moments.
Download MP3

Book Festival News

Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024 Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024
Sunday 14 April

Enjoying this event? You can help us produce more like it.

Donate

Share

Listen to more

Miguel Syjuco reading Be Here Now Miguel Syjuco reading Be Here Now The bright and brilliant Filipino-born Man Asian Literary Prize-winner reads his story on the theme of Elsewhere… The Voices in Our Heads: Creating Characters in Fiction (2014 event) The Voices in Our Heads: Creating Characters in Fiction (2014 event) The first sign that a book works is when the characters talk back to their author, and books can represent our internal voices unlike any other art form. A panel of award-winning novelists, Nathan Filer, Edward Carey and Matthew Quick talk about their rel… Kathleen Jamie, Chitra Ramaswamy & Amanda Thomson: Antlers of Water (2020 Event) Kathleen Jamie, Chitra Ramaswamy & Amanda Thomson: Antlers of Water (2020 Event) In a discussion recorded live at the 2020 Book Festival and led by the BBC's Clare English, Jamie is joined by award-winning journalist Chitra Ramaswamy as well as visual artist and writer Amanda Thomson – both contributors to the anthology – to discu… Blake Morrison (2014 event) Blake Morrison (2014 event) Best known for As If, his landmark book about the killing of James Bulger, Blake Morrison is also a poet and novelist. He joined us to read from a new publication, This Poem. Bankers’ bonuses, phone hacking, super-injunctions and Jimmy Savile: these… Gina Martin at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Gina Martin at the Edinburgh International Book Festival The vile practice of upskirting wasn’t an offence in Britain until activist Gina Martin came along. With no legal or political background, Martin changed the law within 18 months. Now, she wants to help others do the same. Be the Change is a campaigning… Christos Tsiolkas (2010 event) Christos Tsiolkas (2010 event) Christos Tsiolkas flew all the way to Edinburgh from his home in Australia to open the 2010 Edinburgh International Book Festival in fine literary style. In a sold-out event chaired by Steven Gale, he discussed his much talked-about best-selling novel The… Nile Rodgers (2012 event) Nile Rodgers (2012 event) He may be best known for the disco hit Le Freak but Nile Rodgers’ influence on pop music has been so very much greater than that… Ian Rankin Ian Rankin   Always one of the most popular Book Festival authors and an international bestselling phenomenon to boot, Scottish-born Ian Rankin is interrogated by fellow crime writer Denise Mina in this revealing 2006 Book Festival event… David Simon David Simon One of the hottest tickets of the 2009 Book Festival, we were thrilled the creator and writer of HBO's universally acclaimed TV series The Wire, took time out to come to Edinburgh for the Book Festival. David Simon first posed the question 'Are America's … Fatima Bhutto at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Fatima Bhutto at the Edinburgh International Book Festival In this event recorded live at the 2019 Edinburgh International Book Festival, we are thrilled to welcome back Fatima Bhutto to discuss her second novel The Runaways. Published against the backdrop of the Shamima Begum controversy, Bhutto’s novel could …