A Scientific Theology

A Scientific Theology
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A Scientific Theology: Nature

Description of A Scientific Theology:

This groundbreaking three-volume work by one of the world's best-known theologians is the most extended and systematic exploration of the relation between theology and science ever undertaken. Drawing on both his firsthand experience of scientific research and his vast knowledge of the Christian tradition, Alister McGrath explores how the natural sciences can be used by the Christian faith. This first volume sets out a vision for a "scientific theology" in which the working assumptions of the natural sciences are critically appropriated as a theological resource. It then deals at length with the important status of nature, a concept that has rarely been given the serious consideration it deserves. Responding to the view that the term "nature" is merely a social construct, McGrath gives the concept a proper grounding in the Christian doctrine of creation, exploring in the process the use of natural theology in contemporary Christian thought. A Scientific Theology is certain to become one of the most controversial and exciting theological publications of the decade.

Information on A Scientific Theology from the publisher:

This groundbreaking three-volume work by one of the world's best-known theologians is the most extended and systematic exploration of the relation between theology and science ever undertaken.Drawing on both his firsthand experience of scientific research and his vast knowledge of the Christian tradition, Alister McGrath explores how the natural sciences can be used by the Christian faith. This first volume sets out a vision for a "scientific theology" in which the working assumptions of the natural sciences are critically appropriated as a theological resource. It then deals at length with the important status of nature, a concept that has rarely been given the serious consideration it deserves. Responding to the view that the term "nature" is merely a social construct, McGrath gives the concept a proper grounding in the Christian doctrine of creation, exploring in the process the use of natural theology in contemporary Christian thought. A Scientific Theology is certain to become one of the most controversial and exciting theological publications of the decade.

About Alister E. Mcgrath:

Alister E. McGrath is professor of historical theology at Oxford University, principal of Wycliffe Hall, Oxford and director of the John Templeton Oxford Seminars on Science and Christianity. He is the author of more than forty books, including In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a Language, and a Culture.

Description of Alister E. Mcgrath, author of A Scientific Theology:

A positive working relationship between Christian theology and the natural sciences is demanded by the Christian understanding of the nature of reality itself--an understanding which is grounded in the doctrine of creation...If God made the world, which therefore has the status of being 'creation' as well as 'nature', it is to be expected that something of the character of God might be disclosed through that creation Taking his cue from theological greats like Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, John Calvin, and others, Alister McGrath argues for the validity and the necessity of a natural theology. But the proper perspective must be kept at all times; the natural sciences must always be seen as ancillary to theology, and must never dominate theology. Thus, in Scientific Theology: Nature, McGrath looks at how Christians can appropriate what is good and true from the natural sciences for the dissemination of the gospel.First and foremost, McGrath explains why A Scientific Theology is legitimate and necessary. Then he offers insight into his approach to both theology and science (he holds advanced degrees in both fields, including a doctorate in molecular biophysics). He looks at the construction of nature, the Christian doctrine of creation, and implications of that doctrine. He moves on to the purpose and place of natural theology, which he argues is never enough to give a full picture of God, but is a good first step that can help us to understand biblical theology better. His argument for the abilities of natural theology are as follows: "the Christological dimensions of the doctrine of creation are such that divine rationality--whether this is conceptualized as logos or ratio--must be thought of as being embedded in creation and embodied in Christ. The same divine rationality or wisdom which the natural sciences discern within the created order is to be identified within the logos incarnate, Jesus Christ. Creation and Christ ultimately bear witness to the same God, and the same divine rationality."McGrath asks some very important questions about the relationship between the natural sciences and theology. One of the most important is: "Might there be a basis for proposing a unitary foundation for human knowledge, while avoiding the rationalist imperialism of the Enlightenment, so rightly derided and critiqued by its opponents? And might Christian theology offer such a basis?" That is the main question that McGrath hopes to answer with this book (and with the other two books planned in the series). The result is a fascinating, insightful, and stimulating read that belongs at the forefront of natural theology.