Fife's Future

Interviews

Faith is not always easy.

As a Christian and a teacher Alan Torrance has always had to articulate and
interpret faith and the justification for belief in God. Asking hard questions about
suffering and evil has been part of his life and work. The St Andrews
University professor talks frankly about how as a theology student he
questioned his faith and became an agnostic for a period. Much later his
restored faith had to cope with watching his wife dying of cancer.
He describes a strong sense of the presence of God at her bedside. He also
describes dealing with subsequent depression, and the mistake many
Christians make in assuming that depression is essentially a spiritual problem.


The mathematician who loves the sun

Eric Priest is a professor of mathematics at St Andrews University. For many years he has studied the sun and loves the complicated equations that model what is going on in our nearest star. For Eric, exploring the beauty of the sun is exploring part of God’s handiwork. He is a distinguished scientist who has been honoured for his work and he explains how his faith complements his understanding of the universe. He believes that science and logic only answer some questions. There are other questions that are deeply important to us as human beings and those include the existence of God.


Training is the way of the future


Janet McCauslin believes passionately that education and training are essential to help young people get jobs. As the Vice Principal of Carnegie College she is determined to give people who did not flourish at school the chance to become skilled workers. A key part of her work is training young people to work in the renewables industry which is booming in Fife. In the training workshops at Carnegie College she explains how her upbringing in a devastated former mining community, and her faith, drive her to help the community.

Lifeboat accident survivor

Pamela McLean feared the worst when her teenage son Alistair was badly injured by the propeller of the Kinghorn Lifeboat in 2007. His severe head injury meant the family was warned that he would be paralysed down his right side, his sight would be affected and he would have no speech and no comprehension. At the time she felt unable even to say the Lord’s prayer. But despite everything he has been through Alistair’s recovery has exceeded his family’s wildest hopes.