Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Darwin's Pious Idea

Darwin's Pious Idea: Why the Ultra-Darwinists and Creationists Both Get It WrongHere's a book that looks interesting: Darwin's Pious Idea: Why the Ultra-Darwinists and Creationists Both Get it Wrong, by Conor Cunningham. The description of the book from Amazon states
"According to British scholar Conor Cunningham, the debate today between religion and evolution has been hijacked by extremists: on one side stand fundamentalist believers who reject evolution outright; on the opposing side are fundamentalist atheists who claim that Darwin's theory rules out the possibility of God. Both sides are dead wrong, argues Cunningham, who is at once a Christian and a firm believer in the theory of evolution. In "Darwin's Pious Idea" Cunningham puts forth a trenchant, compelling case for both creation and evolution, drawing skillfully on an array of philosophical, theological, historical, and scientific sources to buttress his arguments."
 Here are a few quotes from some prominent scholars:
"This book connects the debate about the nature of Darwinian evolution to the Christian theology of creation. . . . Cunningham shows that the picture of God as the great Designer of artifacts, espoused by Paley and common to both ultra-Darwinians and creationists, is profoundly at odds with Christianity." -- Charles Taylor, author of "A Secular Age"
"Writing with engaging humor that betrays an extraordinary energetic intelligence, Conor Cunningham shows us why, given the Christian God, an evolutionary account of life is necessary... This theological account of creation, I believe, will become a classic." -- Stanley Hauerwas, author of "Hannah's Child"
"Dawkins and company lack a minimum of understanding of what religion is about, of how it works. Cunningham's book is thus obligatory reading for all interested in this topic: while fully endorsing the scientific validity of Darwinism, it clearly brings to light its limitations in understanding not only religion but also our human predicament. A book like this is needed like simple bread in our confused times." -- Slavoj Zizek
"A brilliant and enlightening book! . . . Singularly important for the dialogue between science, religion, and culture." -- Archbishop Joseph Źyciński, Catholic University of Lublin, Poland
"Cunningham brings a formidable and illuminating intelligence to a topic all too often hidden amid clouds of prejudice, polemic, and ideology. This is a splendid book!" -- David Bentley Hart, author of "Atheist Delusions"

1 comment:

  1. Well, on this one, I would have appreciated more analysis from you.
    What is Cunningham's argument? I see a series of raves from others and a claim that people who are not able to reconcile evolutionary theory with religion don't really understand (accept?) religion, but I still don't know the gist of his argument. So far, what we have is an appeal to authority. Yes, I know -- read the book. But there are so many books and my time is limited -- in more ways than one.

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