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  • Cited by 14
Publisher:
Cambridge University Press
Online publication date:
June 2012
Print publication year:
2008
Online ISBN:
9780511807701

Book description

Scientific accounts of existence give chance a central role. At the smallest level, quantum theory involves uncertainty and evolution is driven by chance and necessity. These ideas do not fit easily with theology in which chance has been seen as the enemy of purpose. One option is to argue, as proponents of Intelligent Design do, that chance is not real and can be replaced by the work of a Designer. Others adhere to a deterministic theology in which God is in total control. Neither of these views, it is argued, does justice to the complexity of nature or the greatness of God. The thesis of this book is that chance is neither unreal nor non-existent but an integral part of God's creation. This view is expounded, illustrated and defended by drawing on the resources of probability theory and numerous examples from the natural and social worlds.

Reviews

'… provides theologians with important and necessary raw materials to be carefully used within their own areas of expertise.'

Source: European Society for the Study of Science and Theology

'Bartholomew, an Emeritus Professor of Statistics, presents a complex story line with exemplary clarity, arguing both against those who maintain that the likelihood of life, let alone humans, appearing by chance is so miniscule that there must be an intelligent designer, and against those who assume God must have determined every detail of His creation.'

Source: Theological Book Review

'… an insightful and helpful aid.'

Peter H. Van Ness - Yale University School of Medicine

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Contents

References
Further reading
References
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Further reading
Brooke, John Hedley 1991. Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
ConwayMorris, Simon Morris, Simon 1998. The Crucible of Creation: the Burgess Shale and the Rise of Animals. Oxford: Oxford University Press
Davies, Paul C. W. 1982. The AccidentalUniverse. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Eigen, Manfred and Winkler, Ruthild 1982. The Laws of the Game: How the Principles of Nature Govern Chance. London: Allen Lane, Penguin Books Ltd
Haught, John F. 2003. Deeper than Darwin: the Prospect for Religion in the Age of Evolution.Boulder, Colo.: Westview Press
Peacocke, Arthur, 2004. Creation and the World of Science: the Re-shaping of Belief. Oxford: Oxford University Press (first published in 1979)
Peterson, Ivars, 1998. The Jungles of Randomness: a Mathematical Safari. London: Penguin Books
Prigogine, Ilya and Stengers, Isabelle 1984. Order out of Chaos: Man's Dialogue with Nature. London: Heinemann
Ruse, Michael 2004. Can a Darwinian be a Christian?: the Relationship between Science and Religion Today.Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Southgate, Christopher (ed.) 2005. God, Humanity and the Cosmos: A Companion to the Science–Religion Debate (second edition, revised and enlarged). London and New York: T. & T. Clark International
Stannard, Russell (ed.) 2000. God for the 21st Century. Philadelphia: Templeton Foundation Press, and London: SPCK
Stewart, Ian 1989. Does God Play Dice?: the Mathematics of ChaosOxford: Basil Blackwell
Watts, Frazer (ed.) 2007. Creation: Law and Probability.Aldershot, UK: Ashgate Publishing Ltd

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