All in the Mind?: Does neuroscience challenge faith?

by Peter Clarke

Much progress has been made to understand the intricacies of the brain's workings. Some have claimed, and many assumed, that these findings have challenged faith in God to the point of destruction. Are we not mere neural machines? Are religious experiences not just 'in the mind', the products of abnormal 'brain events'? Is faith not just a side effect of evolution? Not so, according to neuroscientist Peter Clarke, after a lifetime's study of the brain. In this comprehensive book, the current state of neuroscientific evidence is weighed up alongside ideas of what it means to be human, the idea of the soul, near-death experiences, and questions of free will and responsibility. He engages with the leading thinkers in these areas, including Francis Crick, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, Sam Harris, and Daniel Wegner.

Genres: Science, Philosophy

256 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2015

Reviews

[Andrew Mcneill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Clarke's exploration of the challenges of neuroscience to faith was a very helpful book to read. He deals with challenges to the idea of the soul, free will and the truth of Christianity, and offers helpful insights into why the science is sometimes not as clear-cut as some writers pretend (in the case of the Libet experiments) and how our theological concepts may need some nuance (such as the concept of the soul). Clarke writes in a very balanced way, and even when I didn't agree with his conclusions, he didn't dogmatically insist on his own view. Perhaps one of the shortcomings of the book is that it often is biased in favour of contemporary scientific perspectives (such as monism) and didn't grapple as seriously as he could have with the biblical text (such as issues to do with the intermediate state). Similarly, he sometimes was quite blasé about the interpretation of Genesis 1 and 2, preferring to adopt a Neo-Darwinian perspective and vaguely cite "non-literal interpretations" rather than tackling the interpretive issues head-on. This means that the book, although helpful in many respects, will have limited value to Christians studying neuroscience with a keener eye on the Biblical text.