How God Works: The Science Behind Spirituality

As more Americans move away from organized religion, the moral and emotional needs once met by faith communities remain. What can secular society borrow from spiritual traditions — ritual, meaning, belonging and moral imagination — to nourish the human spirit and strengthen our shared civic life? In this conversation, recorded live at the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival , Dave explores how sacred wisdom...

The spiritual practice of speaking in tongues –a form of communication with the divine through speaking words in an unknown or unrecognizable language– has invited a lot of speculation and skepticism over the years. To many, it seems like the stuff of horror movies, or old-timey religious revivals. But charismatic Christianity, for which speaking in tongues is a central practice, is one of the fas...

What is prayer? And why do it? People pray for all kinds of reasons, and in all kinds of ways: alone, together, aloud, in silence, from memory, or from instinct. But whatever form it takes, there’s a reason prayer has been part of just about every spiritual tradition out there: its effects run deep.  On this episode, we’re digging into the science and spirit of prayer. We’ll talk to neuroscientist...

There's a lot of talk these days about a crisis of masculinity. But is it a genuine problem or just another culture war talking point?  In this special episode, we’ll talk to writer and researcher Richard Reeves about the real and worrying data around the male struggle for meaning and purpose, and what role community and ritual can play in helping men find answers. We’ll also hear from Dr. Russell...

 Hey listeners, we'll be back in two weeks with a special episode looking at the multiple challenges facing men in America today. But while you wait, we wanted to share an episode from Season 2 of our show that feels especially relevant to that conversation. Think of it as a prequel or primer, because part of the problem, and possibly part of the solution, may have to do with how boys become men i...

For centuries, Western science and philosophy have struggled to explain what consciousness is and where it comes from. What if the answer to both those questions is: everything ? On this episode, we dive into panpsychism: the idea that consciousness may not be limited to humans, or even living beings, but could be a basic property of reality itself. We’ll talk to philosopher Philip Goff about why...

People find faith or change faiths for many reasons: marriage, raising a family, dealing with  grief or crisis. But sometimes it happens the other way around… faith finds you. A believing takes hold, a sense that something divine is there. And maybe not in the way or role that you might have expected.  It’s not uncommon. Data show that these types of experiences happen to about 30% of people. On t...

Many would agree there are few things better than sharing a delicious meal with the people you love, which is one reason why breaking bread together is a cornerstone of religions the world over. But so too is the opposite - going without food.  From Ramadan to Yom Kippur to Lent, fasting is an important ritual in many faiths. But why do so many religions periodically take away the very thing that...

We often think of belief as a religious or cultural idea that is a hallmark of modern humans. But what if the early sparks of belief burned in our ancestors’ minds long before modern humans walked the earth? What if beliefs about some of the biggest questions out there, like what happens after death, weren’t just pondered by Homo sapiens ? On this episode, evolutionary anthropologist Agustín Fuent...

When it comes to finding happiness, many religions see marriage as the gold standard: a path to love, stability, and fulfillment. But is that really true? And if so, why are marriage rates plummeting in so many parts of the world? In this episode, we’ll talk to anthropologist Joseph Henrich about the surprising history of marriage and monogamy, including how these institutions helped lay the groun...

Join us for Season 8 of How God Works, starting next week!

We'll be back with a whole new season of How God Works on March 9th. But in the meantime, we wanted to share shows from our archives that speak to some of the most pressing challenges we're all facing today. It’s only February, and already this has been an intense year. So if you’re feeling stressed today, how about… a breather? It’s no accident that the Hebrew word for breath is the same as the w...

We'll be back with a whole new season of How God Works starting in early March. But in the meantime, we wanted to share a few shows from our archives that speak to some of the most pressing challenges we're all facing today. Hate and prejudice based on ethnicity, religion, gender and sexual orientation are all too common in our world. But are we doomed to be this way? Or is it possible to create a...

Artificial Intelligence, and its possible applications to religion, have been in the news a lot lately, so while we're busy working on Season 8, we thought we'd share this episode from 2022 with you. Can you pray with a robot? Will people worship AI like a god? It’s not science fiction. It’s starting to happen now. But what does it mean if robots become priests, or AIs start offering ethical advic...

Faith has always been a strong force in human history – but in modern times, it may feel antiquated to have it. This is an episode of the How to Be a Better Human podcast in which Dave talks about his research exploring questions of faith, his findings, and why we shouldn’t leave spiritual wisdom behind, even in the age of science.  Hosted by comedian Chris Duffy, How to Be a Better Human features...

The holidays are supposed to be a time of joy. But all too often, the darker, colder days of winter, and even the stress of preparing for the holidays themselves, can lead people to feel something else: rushed, stressed, lonely, or even hopeless. How can you make sure this year is bright? Science shows that there's a wisdom to parts of traditional winter celebrations – a wisdom that's been honed o...

This episode from 2023 is one of our all-time listener favorites. We're sharing it again for anyone who may have missed it, or could do with a refresher, especially at the holiday season!  Surveys show feelings of sadness and despair peaked in 2023. So as we look to the new year, it’s understandable why any of us might be feeling pessimistic, even hopeless. But these feelings aren’t written in sto...

Lots of religions embrace the idea of hell – a place of eternal punishment for wrong doers. But where did that idea come from? How has it changed through time? And how does a belief in it (or not) affect us while we’re alive?  We’ll talk with Bart Ehrman about the history of beliefs in hell from ancient Mesopotamia through modern Christianity. And with Shadi Hamid about why he thinks it can be a g...

People have been having Near-Death Experiences (NDEs) all over the world for as long as we can look back into history. And the strange thing is… these experiences seem to have a lot in common. Why? Is it a look into the afterlife? Is it just our neurons firing in weird ways as the brain dies?  We’ll talk to psychiatrist Bruce Greyson, one of the world’s leading experts on Near-Death Experiences, a...

There’s no question we’re living in difficult times that lead many of us to adopt a cynical outlook. But while cynicism might feel smart, science shows it’s corrosive not only to our own wellbeing, but to society as a whole. We’ll talk to Stanford Professor of Psychology Jamil Zaki about the surprising benefits that a willingness to trust in the goodness of others can offer, and how to build this...

We spend a lot of time on How God Works talking about how spirituality can offer tools to become better versions of ourselves.  And while learning to be happier, healthier and more resilient are all positive things to strive for, they can also lead us down a different path - an obsession with productivity and self-optimization… which can lead to a culture of trying to grind or life-hack our way th...

Regret can be a double-edged sword.  It can be painful, and enduring, but we can also learn important lessons from it - IF we treat it right. Most religions speak of forgiveness and compassion, not only toward others but also toward oneself. Still, letting go can be difficult to do at times. So how do we learn from regret and start anew? Dave speaks with best selling author Daniel Pink, and renown...

For many people, the word “sin” is associated with harsh judgment and shame. Or, it’s used to talk about guilty pleasures like consuming decadent desserts... But is this concept as harmful or outdated as it seems? Join Dave as he talks with Elizabeth Oldfield about Christianity’s Seven Deadly Sins, and how reconceptualizing them for modern life can offer a science-backed user’s manual of sorts to...

Join us for Season 7 of How God Works, starting next week! 

We've had a lot of new listeners join us of the past year, so while we're hard at work on our next season, we thought we'd share some favorites you might have missed from the archives. Have you ever heard a voice, seen an image, or felt a presence around you that you couldn’t explain? If you have, you’re not alone.  More people than you might think report having these kinds of experiences. For som...