The Reenchantment of Science: Postmodern Proposals

by David Ray Griffin

Describes the move from modern, mechanistic science to a post-modern, organismic science.

190 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1988

About the author

Dr. Griffin, a retired emeritus professor of Philosophy of Religion and Theology at the Claremont School of Theology, has published over 30 books and 150 articles. His 9/11 books have been endorsed by Robert Baer, William Christison, William Sloane Coffin Jr., Richard Falke, Ray McGovern, Paul Craig Roberts and Howard Zinn.

Reviews

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent work from panspychist perspectives that explore possibilities that all transcend positivist, objectivist, externalist, materialist-monist, behaviorist, locomotionist, mechanistic, deterministic, reductionist, sensationist, rationalist modernism.

[Michael Sharp · Rating 2 out of 5]

This edited collection is a criticism of what I like to call naive materialism as this materialism is expressed in 19th century materialist/mechanistic science. The writers in the book point out, quite rightly, that science as it is currently expressed and practiced is woefully inadequate to explain reality. Not only that, but science as it is currently practiced is responsible and culpable for the growing chaos and disorder in our political, economic, and ecological houses. Science does well with simple things, binary operations, and laboratory abstractions, but falls down miserably when dealing with the dirty, non materialist, non mechanistic realities of life.

The writers are right to challenge science. The problem is, the writers in the text don't offer any sort of reasonable solution. They try to move beyond the naive materialism and mechanism of modern science but in the end they can do little more than adopt sterile postures because they are afraid to embrace the glorious truth of creation which is that is is a personal creation of Consciousness (what I call the Fabric of Consciousness in my The Book of Light: The Nature of God, the Structure of Consciousness and the Universe within You). Many people reading this will be loath to admit it but unfortunately until the basic cosmological truth is embraced science will be blocked at the crossroads. Not only will science fail to provide a suitable alternative to the mechanistic song of creation it currently provides, but it will continue to contribute to what now seems to be the inevitable global slide into political, economic, social, and environmental catastrophe.

I give this book two stars. Its a good attempt from a group of people with their heart in the right place, but it fails because fear of the truth blocks apprehension, and appreciation, of the true way forward.