Everyday Glory: The Revelation of God in All of Reality

by Gerald R. McDermott

How do we know and speak about God's relation to this world? Does God reveal himself through his creation? This book recaptures a Christian vision of all reality: that the world is full of divine signs that are openings into God's glory. Bringing together insights from some of the tradition's greatest thinkers--Edwards, Newman, and Barth--Gerald McDermott resurrects a robust theology of creation for Protestants. He shows how and where meaning can be found outside the church and special revelation in various realms of creation, including nature, science, history, law, animals, sex, and sports.

Genres: Theology, Christianity, Christian

224 pages, Paperback

Published November 20, 2018

About the author

Gerald R. McDermott (PhD, University of Iowa) is Jordan-Trexler Professor of Religion at Roanoke College in Salem, Virginia, and Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Baylor Institute for Studies of Religion. He is the author or editor of ten books, including God's Rivals: Why Has God Allowed Different Religions? and Claiming Christ: A Mormon-Evangelical Debate.

Reviews

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gerald McDermott, Jonathan Edwards expert, has written a meditation on nature, keyed from biblical typology, building on the insights of Edwards and Newman. It’s in the vein of Leithart’s “Traces of the Trinity”, developing the approach into new areas.

He reflects on:-
Nature
Science
Law
History
Animals
Sex
Sports
World religions
And each reflection fuses meditation on nature with scriptural insights. Very worthwhile.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was oddly captivating. Even thought it seemed tedious to get through at times, I liked it. There were many concepts presented here that I’ve never thought of or pondered. Lots to think about when it comes to revelation in the world, all pointing back to Christ. I didn’t think this book was going to impact me as much as it did, and I know I’m going to be referring back to it.

[Spencer Falk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found a bit laborious to read at times but the appendixes re: Luther and Barth were worth pushing through to the end. Interesting thoughts for sure.

[Jared Mcnabb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite a good look at general revelation and natural theology, building off theologians like Jonathan Edwards, patristic scholars, and even James Jordan's "Through New Eyes." The beginning chapters were the strongest. The appendix on Luther's and Barth's rejection of natural theology was worth reading as well.

[Mark Seeley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book opened my eyes. And that is the end McDermott hopes the readers will take away from the book. The title is a little deceptive because the book is really about typology and the types given to us in the natural world if we would just pierce through the mundane and look for the marvelous. The over all thesis is strong, but some chapters and types I found weak, especially the one on sports. Seriously, after reading it, I contemplated getting a pet dog after his discussion on animals. For those who enjoy Jonathan Edwards, this should be in your library.

[Zachary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall, I quite enjoyed this book. It has a fascinatingly apologetic tone to it, though it is directed more to believers than anyone else. In that regard, its exploration of natural theology does lend it more towards that purpose. The subtitle of the book had led me to believe that the book was going to deal with a doctrine of revelation which had all of reality in view. Rather, instead, it is an exploration of typology, with the undergirding assumption being that typology is how God reveals himself in "all of reality."

So, once I got past my initial disappointment of the book not quite being concerned with what I thought it was, I really did enjoy the book. One of my favorite chapters was the fourth, where McDermott delves into how science points towards God, and how there are "types" in science which glorify God. I suspect many will be fascinated with his tenth chapter, which explores world religions, attempting to demonstrate those areas where they seem to carry "types" from the gospel or the Bible, while not quite coming to the same conclusions.

The latter assertion might make some nervous, but McDermott is pretty explicit about the limitations of natural revelation and especially those things other religions get "right" and where/how they miss the mark. In this sense, the book is essentially an exploration of how one might go about perceiving the world according to Jonathan Edwards and his understanding of types.

This book was a pretty straight-forward read. I think the excellent research and healthy dose of footnotes will be quite acceptable to academics, but McDermott's writing style is not overly complex and so I think this would also be accessible to most pastors and even lay people in churches. For pastors, McDermott's discussions of types might actually help point towards some good sermon illustrations, as well as give some good boundaries for how such illustrations could be culled for theological/doctrinal points.

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Exciting news! I bought this book at the Circe conference after browsing all around the Baker Books table. When I came home, I realized it was on my list of books-to-read, so I felt vindicated/supported in my purchase. :)

This is an interesting book. It is about types in the world that point to God. Here's a rather esoteric example: the light from distant stars show us the way it was thousands of years ago. This connects to the Eucharist, where the past of Christ's death and person come into the present in the sacraments. "In this case, astrophysics gives us a type of this way God works by showing us how the past can come into the present."

I do enjoy this kind of thinking. But then I become a little leery of it, especially when the author talks about sports showing us how God enjoys play and light-heartedness. Mmmm. What about the idolatry involved therein!?!?

Good-to-consider ideas in this book.

[Nerida · Rating 4 out of 5]

“For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made...” Romans‬ ‭1:20‬

It’s taken me a long time to get through this one, but I made it! This book is a really helpful reminder of all the ways God shows Himself to us in the world — in nature, science, music, sports, moral law and other religious teachings.

I found the chapter on moral law the most interesting. I had no idea how many base similarities there are between different moral systems! The 10 Commandments are definitely a handy summary though.

[Joseph Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

McDermott’s point in this work is to restore the enchantment of the world, especially for Christians. By investigating nature, science, morality, sports, etc., he makes them claim that because everything is created and sustained by God, that He has left glimpses of Himself throughout all creation, even the places we wouldn’t normally look. He does his job! It is an intriguing and compelling work that will benefit many.

[Bob Wang · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great introductory book, for someone who is interested in Biblical typology, it is a great place to start.
As someone who watches the Symbolic World and other Jonathan Pageau's videos, the concept seems to be a bit too simple.

[Dustin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worth a reread!

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book to own and reread (especially loved the bit about birds!)

[William Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Deserves 6 stars. Fabulous in every way.

[Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

An important and interesting thesis for considering the question of natural revelation.

[Jared Abbott · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read!