What the Heavens Declare: Science in the Light of Creation
Ebook
In her latest book, What the Heavens Declare, Lydia Jaeger provides a detailed analysis of the role of the theistic doctrine of creation in the rise of modern science, with a particular focus on the natural order. As the author explains, despite the common use of the expression "laws of nature" by both scientists and laymen, there is a long-standing tradition of philosophical debate about, and even refusal of, the notion that laws of nature might exist independently of a divine or human mind. This work attempts to account for natural order in harmony with the religious worldview that significantly contributed to the original context in which modern science began: the world seen as the creation of the triune God.
"Readers of Lydia Jaeger's arresting book may at first be
surprised to find favorable references to 'creationism' and
'creationists,' terms that so often connote anti-evolutionary
rhetoric and religious fundamentalism. But they should not be
deceived. Her object is not to defend populist religious movements
but to reinstate a sophisticated theology of creation having
distinguished precedents within Christian tradition, and a
Protestant Reformed tradition in particular. The universe she
describes is one in which everything that exists is radically
dependent on a Creator God whose wisdom and faithfulness guarantee
the order of nature. Despite many competing accounts of nature's
'laws,' and despite current critiques of the applicability of the
concept, Dr. Jaeger gives a spirited defense of a philosophy of
science in which physical laws are still best understood as divine
legislation. A bold and challenging essay."
--John Hedley Brooke
Emeritus Professor of Science and Religion, Oxford University
"What the heavens declare is here unfolded in all its fullness.
Anyone who wants to understand what creationism really means should
read this work. It restores the recently narrowed doctrine of
creation to its historic stature and does so in conversation with
contemporary issues in science, philosophy of science, and theology
of nature. Discerning and inspiring."
--Jitse M. van der Meer
Professor of Biology and History and Philosophy of Science,
Redeemer University College, Ancaster, Ontario
Coeditor of Nature and Scripture in the Abrahamic Religions
(2008)
"In What the Heavens Declare, the author provides a scholarly
survey of the biblical doctrine of creation, in dialogue with the
key ideas that led to the emergence of modern science. The book
provides a fine contribution to our understanding of the critical
role played by the Christian concept of creation in shaping the
history of Western thought. It is warmly recommended."
--Denis Alexander
Director of The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion, St.
Edmund's College, Cambridge, UK
Product Details
- Title : What the Heavens Declare: Science in the Light of Creation
- Authors:
- Jaeger, Lydia
- Michon, Cyrille
- Publisher: Cascade Books
- Publication Date: 2012
- ISBN: 9781621893561
Lydia Jaeger is Academic Dean at the Institut Biblique de Nogent-sur-Marne, near Paris. She is the author of five books and several articles on the relationship between Christianity and the natural sciences.