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Fresh Perceptions on Reality Conference
23 January @ 2.00pm to 6.00pm
About Fresh Perceptions on Reality Conference
“Until recently, believing in God seemed incompatible with science. Now, unexpectedly, science appears to have become God’s ally.” From the Introduction of God, The Science, The Evidence
Fresh Perceptions on Reality is a half-day conference coming to Oxford on Friday 23 January 2026, running from 2.00pm to 6.00pm at Wolfson College.
Free and open to the public, the afternoon event brings together leading scientific and intellectual voices to explore some of humanity’s most enduring questions in the light of modern discoveries.
The conference features a distinguished line-up of speakers, including Sir Roger Penrose, Andrew Briggs and John C. Lennox, alongside Michel-Yves Bolloré and Olivier Bonnassies, authors of the international bestseller God, The Science, The Evidence.
The book has sold more than 400,000 copies worldwide and has attracted widespread attention in the UK, with coverage across The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, The London Standard, BBC Radio 4’s Today programme and BBC News.
Across the afternoon, speakers will examine questions that sit at the heart of both science and philosophy: Where does the universe come from? Are we here by chance? And what do recent advances in quantum physics, cosmology and artificial intelligence mean for how we understand reality itself?
Once seen as incompatible, science and belief are increasingly being revisited together as new evidence reshapes long-held assumptions.
Drawing on insights from physics, cosmology and beyond, the discussions reflect a growing reassessment of the relationship between scientific discovery and belief, sometimes described as a “great reversal”. Ideas emerging from relativity, quantum mechanics, the Big Bang and the fine-tuning of the universe have reopened debates that many believed were long settled.
God, The Science, The Evidence distils research and perspectives from more than 100 leading scientists, including insights linked to 62 Nobel Prize winners, and extends the conversation beyond science alone to philosophy, morality and history.
Praised for being both rigorous and accessible, the book invites readers – and now conference audiences – to reconsider how science shapes our understanding of existence and whether reality points beyond itself.
Fresh Perceptions on Reality offers an opportunity for Oxford audiences to engage with these ideas firsthand, in an open and thought-provoking forum that encourages curiosity, debate and a deeper exploration of one of humanity’s most profound questions.
Reviews
“A very welcome, interesting and easy to read book which argues convincingly that the existence of a creator God, far from being negated by the scientific understanding of the Universe, is rationally supported by it. This is a remarkable work with hundreds of references citing leading contemporary scientists.”
John C. Lennox, Emeritus Professor of Mathematics, University of Oxford, author of Can Science Explain Everything?
“This book is a very good presentation of the development of the Big Bang theory and its impact on our beliefs and our representation of the world…As the Big Bang theory suggests, if the Universe had a beginning, then we cannot avoid the question of creation.”
Robert Wilson, Winner of the Nobel Prize in Physics for his discovery of Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
“The book highlights in a remarkable and rigorous manner how the latest scientific advances point towards a creator God. Wonderfully documented, it also introduces many renowned scientists who advocated for a dynamic harmony and osmosis between their discoveries and the idea of a creator at the origin of all things.”
Stephanie Reader, Evangelical and specialist in the field of programmed cell death, author of Is it Possible? When Science and Faith Meet
“The amazing advances in science and cosmology over the past century raise fundamental questions about our existence…Michel-Yves Bolloré and Olivier Bonnassies explore these questions in a highly readable way, and give a personal account of how their answers lead them to a warranted belief in God.”
Andrew Briggs, Professor of Physics, University of Oxford, author of The Penultimate Curiosity
“This book thus provides a strong, rational argument for the reality of a creator God that is very comforting to those with a scientific mindset. Highly recommended!”
Eben Alexander, MD, author of Proof of Heaven
“This book represents an innovation. It demonstrates that it is no longer ‘credible’ to pit science against faith…[The book] widens our field of reasoning and is an invitation to wonder.”
Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect Emeritus of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments
Tickets
Please see important booking information below.
Booking information
Ticket prices:
Free event
Dates & times:
Friday 23 January 2026 at 2.00pm
Running time:
4 hours