Something Understood

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BBC Radio 4 LW

Religion & Ethics

Ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life

Ethical and religious discussion that examines some of the larger questions of life, taking a spiritual theme and exploring it through music, prose and poetry

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Something Understood: When Certainties Are Shaken

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When Certainties Are Shaken

BBC Radio 4 - Something Understood, When Certainties Are Shaken

Samira Ahmed asks what we do when new revelations throw our past convictions into doubt.

It can be unsettling when things we feel sure of are not as they seemed. Samira Ahmed reflects on times when new revelations throw our past convictions into doubt.


When things we feel sure of are not actually as they seem, it can be unsettling. What do we do when new revelations throw past convictions into doubt? Samira Ahmed reflects on times when existing certainties in people and events are shaken; when trust is tested.

Is there anything we can be truly certain of in life? Our sense of self might alter with age and experience. The most solid relationship could change or end. Even our most heartfelt beliefs could falter. In the wider world, we might place trust in things communally as a society; things we feel we should be confident of, like financial institutions or the labels on our food. Even with a healthy dose of scepticism, do we need to invest a degree of certainty or trust, for society to work?

When something goes wrong - particularly in these uncertain times - do we feel that trust or faith has been shaken? History has many examples of existing certainties crumbling in the face of new revelations, especially from the world of science.

Perhaps absolute certainty about anything is rare. Maybe most things in life we might feel certain of - people, situations, ourselves - are prone to be shaken up from time to time. In the programme, we hear the Reverend Canon David Reindorp share his experience of depression; a period of great insecurity for him.

The programme includes readings from Angela Carter, Gerard Manley Hopkins and Walt Whitman with music by Etta James, Stephen Sondheim and Sir William Herschel.



Produced by Caroline Hughes
A Whistledown production for BBC Radio 4

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