Re: [asa] Recommendation for a book on evolution?

Hi David,

I don't have Wilcox's book handy but from what I remember it really doesn't
tackle the theological issues that deeply either. I do remember
appreciating his stuff on human evolution though & thinking that it was a
great complement to Falk's book. For the science perspective (which was
Paul's original query) these two probably fit the bill as a good
introduction - probably more so than Collins' (although to be fair, I read
Collins' book last - so by the time I got to it much of the discussion was
old hat).

What I find fascinating is that as of 10 years ago there were virtually
no books on evolution written from an Evangelical perspective (were there
any? corrections welcome.). In the recent past there have been a flurry of
books on the topic, but virtually all of them have been by Evangelical
scientists. There are none by Evangelical theologians that are not also
scientists (eg. mcgrath, polkinghorne, george murphy "The cosmos in the
light of the cross"). (Again, corrections welcome). My take on what is
happening:

   - For a very long time (basically since the early 20th century
   fundamentalist / liberal split) Evangelicals were almost by definition
   anti-evolution (probably betraying my North American perspective here -
   might be different across the pond).
   - Although there certainly were some Evangelicals (mostly scientists?)
   in the mid-late 20th century who disagreed with this opposition, these
   voices were completely marginalized
   - Only very recently has the Evangelical scientific community become
   more public with their view that acceptance of biological evolution
   is compatible with an Evangelical expression of the Christian faith.
   - The Evangelical theological community has in my view remained on the
   sidelines so far. So the scientists are forced to work with the tools they
   have. No professional help is being provided.

My summary: I don't think we should be too hard on Evangelical scientists
like Collins, Falk, and Wilcox for not demonstrating theological depth.
They are doing a great service on the scientific side and doing the best
they can on the theological side (believe me, its better than I could
do!). Maybe we just need to be patient. Then again, maybe we should be
lobbying the theologians.

thanks,

On 12/13/07, David Opderbeck <dopderbeck@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
> I enjoyed Falk's book as well, particularly his personal story. However,
> I thought it was exceedingly weak theologically. He really doesn't address
> any of the key theological or hermeneutical issues, except with the same
> kind of hand waiving as Francis Collins: "it's all figurative." If people
> want to engage these things from an evangelical perspective, they have to do
> a better job on the theology. I didn't see any Amazon reviews for David
> Wilcox's book -- how was it on the theological issues?
>
>
> On Dec 13, 2007 1:33 PM, Steve Martin <steven.dale.martin@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> >
> > Hi Paul,
> >
> > I agree with Allan. I definitely recommend Falk's book as the place to
> > start. That being said, one aspect of Falk's book that I found
> > disappointing was his almost complete silence on human evolution (hominid
> > doesn't even appear in the index!). For that, you might want to check out
> > *God and Evolution: A Faith-Based Understanding *<http://www.amazon.ca/God-Evolution-Faith-Based-David-Wilcox/dp/0817014748/ref=sr_1_1/702-4509785-5691256?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1178932826&sr=1-1>
> > **by David Wilcox.
> >
> > thanks,
> >
> >
> > On 12/13/07, steamdoc@aol.com <steamdoc@aol.com > wrote:
> > >
> > > Paul Bruggink asks "for one recent mass market book that makes the
> > > scientific case for evolution."
> > >
> > > No question in my mind, THE book that best fits that description is
> > > "Coming to Peace with Science" by Darrel Falk (IV Press, 2004). It isn't
> > > clear whether you were asking for a book from a Christian perspective (which
> > > this is, Falk is a biology Prof. at Point Loma Nazarene), but this is the
> > > best accessible presentation I have seen from any perspective of the
> > > evidence that evolution has happened. Maybe the lack of such "making the
> > > case" books (at least that I am aware of) from non-Christian sources
> > > reflects that it is mostly only Christians who need convincing at that basic
> > > level.
> > > The book by Francis Collins also makes the scientific case to some
> > > extent, but Falk's book is much stronger in that regard.
> > >
> > > Allan (ASA Member)
> > > ------------------------
> > > Dr. Allan H. Harvey, Boulder, CO, steamdoc at aol dot com
> > > (usual disclaimers here)
> > > ------------------------------
> > > More new features than ever. Check out the new AOL Mail<http://o.aolcdn.com/cdn.webmail.aol.com/mailtour/aol/en-us/text.htm?ncid=aolcmp00050000000003>
> > > !
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Steve Martin (CSCA)
> > http://evanevodialogue.blogspot.com
>
>
>
>
>

-- 
-- 
Steve Martin (CSCA)
http://evanevodialogue.blogspot.com
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