Questions of Truth: Fifty-One Responses to Questions about God, Science, and Belief [NOOK Book]

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Overview

How did the universe begin? Can God's existence be proven? Do humans matter more than animals? For many years people have sent the scientist-turned-priest John Polkinghorne these and other questions about science and belief. In question-and-answer format, Polkinghorne and his collaborator Nicholas Beale offer their highly informed opinions about some of the most frequently asked of these questions. Readers can follow their own paths through the book, selecting questions that interest them and looking at the ...

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Questions of Truth: Fifty-One Responses to Questions about God, Science, and Belief

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More About This Book

Overview

How did the universe begin? Can God's existence be proven? Do humans matter more than animals? For many years people have sent the scientist-turned-priest John Polkinghorne these and other questions about science and belief. In question-and-answer format, Polkinghorne and his collaborator Nicholas Beale offer their highly informed opinions about some of the most frequently asked of these questions. Readers can follow their own paths through the book, selecting questions that interest them and looking at the additional material if they choose. This unique book will help Christians clarify their beliefs regarding difficult issues and better face challenges--from within and from others--to their faith.

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Editorial Reviews

Library Journal

Polkinghorne, former professor of physics at Cambridge University and esteemed writer on questions of the interaction between science and religion, is a kind of antidote to Richard Dawkins and Sam Harris for the intellectual theist or Christian. Beale, a former student of Polkinghorne, helps him field the questions that form the structure of this intriguing book, which tackles the existence of God, the "anthropic principle," evil, and prayer. A thought-provoking work giving language and rationale to the believer daunted by contemporary atheistic argument. For most collections.


—Graham Christian
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781611640038
  • Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press
  • Publication date: 11/1/2010
  • Sold by: Barnes & Noble
  • Format: eBook
  • Sales rank: 346,359
  • File size: 3 MB

Meet the Author

John Polkinghorneis one of the world's leading experts on Science and Religion. A world-class physics Professor at Cambridge who became a priest, Founding President of the ISSR and winner of the Templeton Prize, Polkinghorne's publications include Exploring Reality, Quantum Physics and Theology, Quarks, Chaos and Christianity, Science and the Trinity, Living with Hope, and Belief in God in an Age of Science.

Nicholas Beale is a strategist and social philosopher and a longtime collaborator of John Polkinghorne. He is author of Constructive Engagementand coauthor, with Colin Howson, of Sense and Nonsense about God and Science.

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Table of Contents

Foreword Tony Hewish xi

Preface John Polkinghorne xiii

Introduction 1

1 Leading Questions 5

1 Science and Religion 5

2 Human Nature 9

3 The Existence of God 11

4 Creation and Evolution 14

5 Evil and Suffering 16

6 Divine Action 17

7 Jesus Christ 19

8 Final Destiny 22

9 Atheism 24

2 The Concept and Existence of God 26

10 Can God's Existence Be Proved? 26

11 Is God a Delusion? 27

12 How Can God Inhabit Eternity? 31

13 Does God Know Everything? 32

14 Is Everything Divinely Predestined? 34

15 Is God the Source of All Morality? 34

16 What about the Trinity? 35

3 The Universe 39

17 How Did the Universe Begin? 39

18 How Can Something Come from Nothing? 40

19 Isn't Everything Random? 41

20 What is the Anthropic Principle? 43

21 Have Anthropic Arguments Been Refuted? 45

22 Why Is the Universe So Big? 50

23 Will Everything, Eventually, Be Explained by Science? 50

24 Is a Unified Theory of Everything Possible? 51

4 Evolution 54

25 Is Evolution Fact or Theory? 54

26 What about Intelligent Design? 56

27 Can the Mind Be Explained by Evolution? 58

28 Isn't Evolution Unethical? 60

29 Why Is Evolution so Wasteful? 61

5 Evil 63

30 Where Does Evil Come From? 63

31 Who or What Is "the Devil"? 65

32 Why Is There Cancer? 66

33 Is Original Sin a Result of Nature or Nurture? 67

34 Why Do People Choose Evil? 68

35 Does Religion Inspire Evil Acts? 69

6 Human Being 71

36 Who Were Adam and Eve? 71

37 What Does It Mean to Be Created "in the Image of God"? 72

38 When Does an Embryo Become a Person? 73

39 Do We Have Souls? 74

40 What Is Conscience? 77

41 Does Human Life Have a Purpose? 78

42 Do Humans Matter More ThanAnimals? 80

7 Religion 83

43 Is Atheism a Form of Faith? 83

44 Can We See Truth? 84

45 Which Stories in the Bible Are True? 85

46 How Does the Death of Jesus Save the World? 88

47 Why Believe Jesus Rose from the Dead? 88

48 How Much Do You Need to Believe to Be a Christian? 89

49 What Place Do Non-Christians Have in God's Universe? 90

50 Will Sinners Suffer Eternal Punishment? 92

51 What Is the Point of Praying? 94

8 Conclusion 96

Appendix A Anthropic Fine-Tuning 99

Appendix B The Brain and Mind 117

Appendix C Evolution 138

Notes 155

Glossary 169

Selected Bibliography 177

Index 181

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