Dictionary of Christianity and Science

by Paul Copan; Tremper Longman III; Christopher L. Reese; Michael G. Strauss

Publisher:

Zondervan

, 2017

Overview

The relationship between Christianity and science, and between competing philosophies of science, has become one the most important areas of study today. The Dictionary of Christianity and Science provides a thorough introduction to this intersection between science and Christian belief.

Featuring the work of over 140 international contributors, the Dictionary of Christianity and Science is a deeply-researched, peer-reviewed, fair-minded work that illuminates the intersection of science and Christian belief. In one volume, you get reliable summaries and critical analyses of over 450 relevant concepts, theories, terms, movements, individuals, and debates. You will find answers to your toughest questions about faith and science, from Adam and Eve and the Age of the Earth to Evolution and String Theory.

Key Features

• Includes over 450 entries on key terms, theories, individuals, debates, and other topics
• Examines some of today’s most challenging topics, including climate change, evolution, bioethics, and much more
• Features contributions from over 140 leading international scholars, including Francis Beckwith, Darrell Bock, William Lane Craig, Craig Keener, and John Walton
• Multiple–view essays on controversial topics allow you to understand and compare viewpoints
• Full cross-reference system, and entries include references and recommendations for further reading

Contents

Top Highlights

“Virtually all of the contributors are evangelical Christians who are experts in their respective fields of study” (Page 11)

“Virtually all of Genesis 1–11 is straightforward narrative prose.” (Page 21)

“As Douglas Moo cogently writes, ‘It is difficult to see how Paul’s argument in Rom. 5:12–21 hangs together if we regard Adam as mythical.” (Page 22)

“Compartmentalization thus keeps peace between science and theology, but at the cost of allowing neither to be itself.” (Page 611)

“Yes, the genealogy is a theological statement, but it is historical as well” (Page 22)

Praise for the Print Edition

Dictionaries are shaped by editors, and the editors of Dictionary of Christianity and Science have created a resource unlike anything available. Here the reader will find fair-minded summaries of crucial scientific categories, diverse viewpoints that will surely satisfy and dissatisfy everyone, sketches of schools of thought that become mini-classroom experiences, and a breadth of learning that demonstrates that evangelicalism is coming of age in the discussion about science and faith. Gone are old-fashioned dismissals of science in favor of the Bible. Instead, what we find is rigorous thinking about some of our faith’s most difficult challenges. Every Christian studying science will want a copy of Dictionary of Christianity and Science within arm’s reach.

—Scot McKnight, Julius R. Mantey Professor of New Testament, Northern Seminary

Books on the relationship of Christianity and science are, by their very nature, controversial, and this one will be no exception. However, the editors and authors have assembled a substantial amount of material on this topic, including not only terms and definitions but multiple-view discussions that explain various views on many of the more controversial subjects. The sheer number of terms, ideas, concepts, and discussions included in this dictionary make this book an extremely unique and helpful “first step” for anyone interested in the subjects included. This volume is the place to begin when questions dealing with the relationship of Christianity to science are broached.

—K. Scott Oliphint, Westminster Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, PA

Science and Christianity are the two great forces that have shaped the modern world. This wideranging dictionary offers thorough coverage of numerous points at which they have intersected historically, mapping the intellectual landscape. Any serious reader who turns to it for reference or for more thorough study will learn a great deal.

—Timothy McGrew, professor and chairman, Department of Philosophy, Western Michigan University

I am very grateful to the editors and contributors for this incredible resource. They have wisely sought advocates of the differing positions and have throughout sought to be comprehensive, informative, and, above all, fair. “Dictionary” is too humble a label for what this is! I anticipate that this will offer valuable guidance for Christian faithfulness.

—C. John Collins, professor of Old Testament, Covenant Theological Seminary

Product Details

• Title: Dictionary of Christianity and Science: The Definitive Reference for the Intersection of Christian Faith and Contemporary Science
• Authors: Paul Copan, Tremper Longman III, Christopher L. Reese, Michael G. Strauss
• Publisher: Zondervan
• Print Publication Date: 2017
• Logos Release Date: 2017
• Pages: 704
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Religion and science › Dictionaries; Theology › Dictionaries
• ISBNs: 9780310530664, 9780310496069, 9780310496052, 0310530660, 0310496063, 0310496055
• Resource ID: LLS:DCTCHRSTNTYSCNC
• Resource Type: Encyclopedia
• Metadata Last Updated: 2022-09-29T23:13:35Z

About the Editors

Paul Copan (PhD, Marquette University) is the Pledger Family Chair of Philosophy and Ethics at Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Florida. In addition to authoring many journal articles, he has written or edited over thirty books in philosophy, theology, and apologetics, including Creation Out of Nothing: A Biblical, Philosophical, and Scientific Exploration, and has served as President of the Evangelical Philosophical Society.

Tremper Longman III (PhD, Yale University) is the Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies and the chair of the Religious Studies department at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California. He is the Old Testament editor for the revised Expositor’s Bible Commentary and general editor for the Story of God Bible Commentary Old Testament and has authored many articles and books on the Psalms and other Old Testament books.

Christopher L. Reese (ThM, Talbot School of Theology) is a writer, editor, and independent scholar. He previously served as marketing manager for B&H Academic, and associate publisher at Moody Publishers. He is cofounder of the Christian Apologetics Alliance.

Michael G. Strauss (PhD, University of California, Los Angeles) is a David Ross Boyd Professor of Physics at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma, where he lives with his wife, Julie. He conducts research in experimental particle physics using data from the Large Hadron Collider at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland. He has previously done research at the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center and the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, and he and his collaborators have published around 1,000 papers in peer-reviewed journals. Strauss speaks at churches, schools, and universities around the world about the intersection of science and Christianity.