ENRICHING OUR VISION OF REALITY:
Theology and the Natural Sciences in Dialogue
By Alister McGrath
SPCK. 215 pages. £10.99
ISBN 978 0 281 075 447
Alister McGrath is the Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University and one of the world’s leading authorities on the matters of science and theology.
His latest book is a tour de force which seeks to ‘interweave scientific and theological narratives’ which will lead to their mutual enrichment.
Multiple levels
He argues that there are multiple levels of meaning which need to be recognised to answer the ‘big’ questions regarding the purpose and meaning of life. Both science and theology play crucial complementary roles in filling in the parts of this ‘big picture.’
With great clarity, breadth and depth of learning, Professor McGrath argues for the priority of the Christian view of reality which both accommodates the scientific enterprise and goes beyond it. The conceptual and methodological potentials and limitations of science are explored with reference to three writers who developed a fruitful interaction between science and theology: Charles A. Colson; Thomas F. Torrance and John Polkinghorne. The similarities and differences between scientific theories and Christian doctrines are helpfully discussed as well as the place of faith and evidence in both science and theology. McGrath shows that developing theories in science is not as straightforward as some might think. Amassing data and then developing models to explain them – the principle of ‘induction’ – might be straightforward in the popular mind, but it is often far removed from reality. Sometimes the origin of theory can be quite surprising, as evidenced by the model for the benzene molecule which came to the scientist Kekule in a dream. There is also ‘abduction’ (Charles Peirce) whereby a theory is tested in terms of its simplicity, elegance and explanatory power.
Tantalising sketch
Following an excellent chapter on human identity and the dangers of reductionism, the book concludes with a tantalising sketch of what a natural theology for the 21st century might look like. While the term ‘natural theology’ might sound alarm bells for some, what is proposed is not an attempt to develop a theological scheme without reference to special revelation. Rather, it is more a ‘theology of nature’; taking up and applying the principle of ‘inference to the best explanation’ to show that the Christian world view provides a ‘coherent, rationally motivated view of the way the world is’ (Polkinghorne).
This is a first rate, highly readable, informative and enjoyable book which is a must for anyone who wishes to explore more deeply how science and Christian theology can be rightly related to each other.
