Thank God for Evolution: How the Marriage of Science and Religion Will Transform Your Life and Our World

by Michael Dowd

Few issues have revealed deeper divisions in our society than the debate between creationism and evolution, between religion and science. Yet from the fray, Reverend Michael Dowd has emerged as a reconciler, finding faith strengthened by the power of reason.

With evidence from contemporary astrophysics, geology, biology, anthropology, and evolutionary psychology, Thank God for Evolution lays out a compelling argument for how religion and science can be mutually enriching forces in our lives.

Praised by Nobel laureates in the scientific community and religious leaders alike, Thank God for Evolution will expand the horizon of what is possible for self, for relationships, and for our world.

Genres: Science, Religion, Nonfiction, Theology, Evolution, Christianity, Spirituality

448 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2007

Reviews

[Scarlett Sims · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ok there are two things I want to say before I get into the actual review:

1. I know it's traditional wisdom that if you don't like a book within x amount of pages (say 25 or 50) you should just stop reading that book because why waste the time. I knew very early on that I did not like this book and yet kept reading. Partially because I didn't think I could write a review of it unless I'd read the whole thing, partially because I don't own that many books right now.

2. I went into this book with the belief that evolution is the mechanism by which God created life on Earth. My beef has nothing to do with the author's acceptance of evolution as fact, but rather several other disappointing aspects that I shall now detail.

Alright. I was hoping for several things from this book, none of which were delivered. First, I was hoping that it would have a good general description of the evidence for evolution and why the majority of the scientific community accepts it as fact. I feel like if you are trying to convince Christians of the theory's veracity, you should explain to them what it actually says; I've met a lot of people whose disbelief can be at least partially attributed to a poor understanding. However, Dowd seems to take it as a given that everyone already knows WHY they should "believe" in evolution and doesn't really discuss the science behind it.

Secondly, I was hoping for a thoughtful discussion of the theological issues that arise when talking about evolution. It's not just the literal six days that makes people skeptical, it's things like the issue of death before the Fall, the need for a historical Adam, etc. Dowd doesn't address these issues in a successful way, when he does at all. Most discussion of actual Christian theology is relegated to an appendix and then sort of hand-waved by saying, "this is all metaphorical language anyway and you don't have to believe it really happened." So, basically what he's saying is you can be a Christian and also accept evolution, but only if you throw out what Christianity says/teaches, which to me isn't an appealing option.

The author claims to come at the issue from a Christian perspective. His religious background is Christianity, but he also makes it clear that this book is for anyone, including atheists. I was looking more for a book whose purpose was specifically reconciling Christian theology with evolutionary theory and this is not that book. Dowd's Christianity is certainly nowhere near orthodox and really his beliefs can be better described as either pantheism or panentheism (although he does devote space to explaining why he prefers a different term of his own making). Even if you have no belief system whatever, the whole tone of the book is very self-help and new-agey... there is so little actual substance in it.

A few more random tidbits that annoyed me as I read:
-He talked about going to a megachurch and his atheist wife getting really into it. He then revealed that it was Joel Osteen's church and that he really liked Osteen's message that focused on self-betterment rather than sin and salvation.
-It was only a paragraph, but he went off on some pro-breastfeeding propaganda that relies on questionable statistics and unquantifiable measurements. A very small part but it stuck out to me because I"m sensitive to it.

There was literally one thing in the entire book that I found useful/enlightening:
In the section where he talks about evolutionary psychology and the different parts of the brain, he mentions that the part that is the most "human" (like bigger/more developed in/possibly unique to humans) is the part that gives us a sense of write and wrong, or like, remorse and shame. This to me is a wonderful example of how modern science can line up with a Biblical understanding of the Fall--showing how it goes into our very biology.

But overall, there is no reason anyone should waste time reading this book.

[Davey · Rating 4 out of 5]

For the atheist: a segue into spirituality.
For the literalist: a point in the right direction.
For the general christian: a unique and plausible viewpoint.
For the agnostic: a breath of fresh air.

[Lanny Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I "accidentally" found this book on Valentine's Day on a clearance shelf at Pamida, and found it almost impossible to put down once I started. The depth and breadth of the book is too great to summarize in a short review, but in essence Dowd has convincingly demonstrated how science and religion truly are interdependent. The fact of evolution doesn't negate the reality of God, but gives a much broader understanding of God, or Ultimate reality. Religion, on the other had, though necessarily reinterpreted through the new worldview provided by science (religion that grew out of and was built upon a flat earth mentality must itself evolve in the way it is understood) provides the necessary moral framework that will enable us to fulfill our role as an integral part of reality.
Though this book will challenge many people's presuppositions
in both the religious and scientific community
(the symbol on the side of his vehicle depicting an ichthus symbol labeled "Jesus" kissing an ichthus symbol labeled Darwin is a humorous indication of the scope of Dowd's endeavor, but will upset some people on both "sides"), those who are open-minded will find this book to be not only thought provoking but life-changing.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough, and also invite those who are interested to check out the website,
http://thankgodforevolution.com/

[Robert Blakesley · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most convincing and uplifting reconciliation of science and religion I have ever come across, recasting the evolution of the universe as a sacred and ongoing process ... an empowering story of why we are here.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

“In over 40 years at two church-related colleges, I’ve heard numerous
presentations to students that were either faith-based or science-based, but not
both. In contrast, Michael Dowd’s Thank God For Evolution program distinctively
melds faith with science into a wholesome perspective, damaging neither. Doing
so, he captures evolution in a thought-provoking context, combining deeptime/
deep-space realities with perceptive insights into the human quest for religious
meaning.”

Michael Dowd was keynote speaker for the Texas Wesleyan University University College Day in 2009.
My comments above and relections of other about his book and presentation (I read the book first)are at the link:
http://www.thegreatstory.org/wesleyan...

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I sincerely wish that I could give this a higher than a "meh" in it's rating. Dowd's text is compelling, full of fresh perspectives, and bubbling over with energy. I found his perspective interesting, if breathless. It opens the possibility of more open and honest dialog, and presents concepts of God that do, indeed, embrace the world of science apologetically. One of my issues is, though, that he seems to have exchanged one form of fundamentalism with another, newer one. There is little in the way of critique of naturalism or reductionist thought in this book, indeed it is almost a strictly one sided "dialog" with "science" dictating to theology. I also found the almost condescending at times tone towards traditional religious thought (often times called "flat Earth" religion) to be tiresome.
The acceptance of pantheism as a part of the structure of Dowd's new theological schema is treated as an understood, but not explored as fully as one might hope. In all, the text is to ambitious, to overly emotive, and to self possessed to be as great as it could have been.

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is an awful book. My priest gave it to me, not having read it himself. No doubt, he, like myself thought the book would be about believing in God and believing in evolution. Unfortunately, only about 5 per cent of the book is about that, the rest is Dowd rambling hither and yon about God and life. He travels around the country giving workshops on what he calls evolutionary spirituality, with his wife, Connie, the atheist. (Sounds like he could be a frequent guest on Oprah.) She gets saved about three quarters through the book. A glorious moment.

My biggest laugh is after talking about the importance of integrity, he said, it is alright for creationists to have their beliefs. I'm sorry, you can't have it both ways. Also, he talks about how much his wife helped in writing the book, then why isn't listed as a co-author.

He intersperses quotes from other people from Robert Wright to Philip K. Dick to John Shelby Spong. The book is a mess, Dowd is a mess.

[Brian · Rating 1 out of 5]

The author adopts the position that the universe is God. He does so without ever explaining how he reached that conclusion. Nor does he address the implications of worshiping a finite "God". Nor does he explain why he rejects atheism and theism. He seems to be unaware of the huge body of work in this field.

[Pedro Rosario-Barbosa · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is pretty rare to point out a book that can really change one's life, but this one has been one of them. Michael Dowd has done an outstanding job in presenting a very sound and coherent view regarding how to think God, evolution, and religion in general. Along with Ursula Goodenough's _The Sacred Depths of Nature_, this book was one which turned me into a Religious Naturalist.

When most people who start reading it, usually they don't understand exactly what the book is about. This was my situation when it ended up in my hands. Yet, when studied, its message becomes clear. Dowd proposes a Religious Naturalist view of God, where He is not seen as a transcendent entity (i.e. a "Big Daddy in the sky somewhere"), but rather a /personification/ of all that there actually is, that is of all of the material world, its processes, including what we know, and what we don't know. For Dowd, God can be even greater than what we know, but He cannot be less than that. This proposal has a pantheist or panentheist flavor to it. He shows that conceived this way, we can say that the universe (God) is evolving always through the same natural creative processes, always leading to emergent properties and structures. We are all part of the story, the process of creativity, and emergence that goes on forming more interconnected and unified societies: from tribes, to villages, to cities, to countries, to economic and political blogs, to globalization, and so on. It all forms part of what scientists and theologians call "The Great Story" or "Big History": the story that includes all of the stories of how the cosmos evolves.

For him, evolution is not meaningless blind chance, because we can actually give it meaning and purpose. From here, he distinguishes between day language and night language. Day language is the language of science in general, strict description about facts and data. Night language is when we use a kind language that refers exactly to the same facts and data, but in a meaningful, spiritual sense. With night language, we can talk about the universe poetically and metaphorically: talking about how God created the elements inside stars, how listening to God's revelation can we save the world, how to follow Christ's steps, and so on. Taking night language literally, not metaphorically, will lead you to what Dowd calls "flat-earth thinking", which is what many religions fall into when they take mythical understandings of the world literally.

Yet, what Dowd proposes is not that people should leave their religious traditions and "convert" to Religious Naturalism. He proposes instead to take this Naturalist view as a "meta-religion", that is, a source where all religious traditions can be nourished, so that they have new ways of referring to God (i.e. the Whole of Reality). So, he is not presenting a religion in competition with other religions, rather he proposes that religious believers become what he calls "religious knowers". We should use science to know in intersubjectively valid terms (what he calls "public revelation"), rather than believing stuff (what he calls "private revelation"). He talks about how through science, God reveals where we came from, what is our place in the universe, how are we constituted, why do we have the instincts that we do, and so on. From here, he gives us great advice, not only about how to have a science-grounded spiritual life, but also how to contribute to everyone's welfare and the world. All of what I've shown is a bit of the bare-bones of what the book has to offer, often in a style with which pastors preach the Gospel.

Criticisms? Yes, there are some. Yet, please understand that none of it is directed at attacking the book in any way. I highly recommend you buy it. I have given the book as gifts to the pastor of my church and friends. Having said that, there comes the uneasy part of pointing out one particular worry, and one flaw.

Worry: Religions are not mere beliefs. Yet, in many of them, beliefs are an integral part of a religion. I do agree with the characterization of many of those beliefs as "flat-earth views". Yet, what Dowd proposes is too radical for many religions. Let me use Roman Catholicism as an example. He does think that taking literally the Creed that Catholics recite in Mass would be a flat-earth vision of reality. If I understand him correctly, he proposes not to give up on the Creed itself, but use it to give it a meaning that is closer to Reality (with capital "R"). So when it talks about God and Christ we use the words with a different meaning and /interpret/ Reality in new ways ... There's the rub! Catholicism (at least in its present form) *requires* a fixed meaning for the words of the Creed, given that these meanings are established through the dogmata (e.g. the Niscean Council's view on Christ's sonship). To change their meaning (at least as radically as Dowd proposes), would be to literally throw away centuries of Catholic tradition and teachings. This will not be an easy task. Liberal Catholics may be more inclined to do something similar, but I seriously doubt that most of them would be willing to change so abruptly. Process theology may find a way to update a lot of Catholic thinking still rooted in Agustin of Hippo and Thomas Aquinas, but I don't expect it to back from the belief that Jesus is as much as God as the Father is (something inherently incompatible with a Religious Naturalist view). From this point of view, I do think that religious denominations would see the book, not as a meta-religious proposal, but rather as competition with current religious beliefs.

Flaw: And here comes the saddest part for me, and the reason why I don't give the book five stars (although I hope that this will be corrected in future editions of the book, I talked to Dowd about this problem and he has taken note of it). The problem per-se is not in the main text but in one of the appendices, specifically Appendix B called "Realizing the Miraculous". What I'm going to say does /not/ change the message of that appendix, it still holds. The message is that we can "realize" the miraculous stories we find about Christ in the Gospels, that is, change the meaning of the stories to refer to objective Reality.

However, it would have been great that before writing it, Dowd would have talked to experts on religion in Antiquity, since apparently he fell in the legendary "Jesus' story is just almost a carbon copy of those of many gods and heroes in earlier religions." One example is when he says that the story of the crucifixion appears in other cases (clarifying in a confusing manner that they include being bound to or embedded within a tree or a stone) like those of "Dionysus, Osiris, Krishna, Prometheus". Um, no. Prometheus was not "bound to a stone" in the same way that Jesus was crucified, and not for the same reason. Osiris was never crucified, nor tied to a tree nor a stone. According to mythology, Krishna was killed (as far as I know) by an arrow. I don't remember if Dionysus was ever tied to a tree or a rock (I'm pretty sure he didn't die on a cross).

Dowd also gives twice the example of the virgin birth in this appendix. Contrary to what he says, the following mythical characters did /not/ have a virgin birth (because their mothers had intercourse, hence, were not virgins): Heracles, Plato, Mithra (according to Roman Mithraism, Mithra was born of a rock, not from "Anahita"), Augustus, Horus, Dyonisus (*not* born in December 25th), Krishna (*not* born in December 25th), Dionysus/Bacchus (they were born of different mothers depending on the religious current), etc. Many of these mothers had intercourse with other gods or they gave birth in an extraordinary manner, but most of these were not virgins.

There are more mistakes like these throughout that portion of the book. It is not my intention to point these out because I want to be mean-spirited. Again, I highly, VERY HIGHLY, recommend this book. Yet, misinformation like this can often lead to people's minds to discredit the rest of what Dowd wants to say, which is factually grounded and a treasure to be valued. Needless to say that Appendix B contains a very important Naturalistic message, but it is obscured by these historical mistakes. I wish I could give it 4.5 stars, but the system doesn't let me, so ... 4/5 stars it is.

[K · Rating 4 out of 5]

On one hand, I absolutely loved much of this book. As one who grew up with young Earth creationism and then turned toward the sciences in high school/college, I am deeply, deeply grateful for the author's skillful discussions that help those, like me, who desperately wish to embrace both intricate, amazing science and scientific discoveries and an unswerving, solid Christian faith. As I read, I found myself constantly widening my perspective, and for that, I am truly grateful to the author.

I am not, unfortunately, able to give this book five stars for a few reasons. First of all, the author, while talented, spreads one paragraph out into five chapters, and I found myself wishing the book could have been far more succinct. But the larger issue, in my mind, and that which others have commented upon is that he truly seems to toss all aspects of formal Christianity out the back door. After making such a wonderful case for how science and Christianity can link together hand in hand, and after discussing how scientific progress can make us all better people and the world a better place (just like what Jesus modeled for us), the author then summarily takes every theological point that many Christians hold dear and states categorically that none of it is needed or worthwhile.

For my part, however, I am so very grateful for the fantastically woven bridge from young Earth creationism to enthusiastic embracing of everything scientific that the book, right there, was worth every moment of reading.

[Dennis Littrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A most remarkable book

Whether Michael Dowd will succeed in reconciling the ways of the ancient religions to the facts of postmodern science, and in doing so, transform our lives by ending the dangerous contention existing between and among the various claims to "the way, the truth, and the life," remains to be seen. He is aiming for nothing less than the complete consilience of science and religion, a merging that, if successful, will be of inestimable value to humankind. I greatly admire the wisdom and intelligence and learning that Dowd brings to this very difficult task. I am amazed at his creativity and his temerity. His idea reminds me of something relatively simple, yet earth-shaking, something that might come from an Einstein or a Gandhi. I am not exaggerating.

The idea is this: we can accept as public truth and as "daytime" knowledge the facts about our world and ourselves as revealed through physics, cosmology, evolutionary psychology, cognitive science, neuroscience, geology, etc., while maintaining our faith in our religious heritage. We can still believe in Jesus Christ as our savior and be guided by the wisdom in the Bible while knowing that the earth really is four and a half billion years old and that, yes, we did indeed evolve from a long extinct ape-like creature.

It might be that Dowd is inventing a discipline. Call it Evolutionary Theology. Because we are educated we know that evolution is a fact; and because we believe in a God who cares and is intimately involved in this world, we therefore must see evolution as God's way of working in this world. But can the denotative words of the Bible be reconciled with such an understanding? Dowd's way around this conundrum is to understand that the Bible, inspired by God, was written in a way comprehendible to the people at the time, using words and images and ideas consistent with their world view. To write in the way of the modern world with the modern understanding would be unintelligible to those people and counterproductive.

This is a nice dodge (if I may) with some plausibility. I am satisfied with just saying that where the Bible is denotatively wrong, it is agreeable to interpret it symbolically. Dowd shies away from this direct approach because it would not help him with his consilience since evangelicals and others who believe in the literal truth of the Bible are sworn enemies of symbolic interpretations.

Dowd wants to celebrate evolution as our "cherished creation story." (p. 37) He sees facts as "God's native tongue." (p. 68) He makes a distinction between the "day language" of fact and the "night language" of meaning, between public revelation and private revelation, between reason and reverence (see especially p. 104). In this way differing utterances and experiences can be reconciled. I was especially enthralled because a friend of mine had the most intense dreams and visions in which she saw truths about the "other side" that she wanted so much for us all to accept. My way of accepting her views without compromising my own beliefs and experiences, was to refer to "public truths" and "private truths." No one can deny your experience. It is "true," but it is a private truth. Of course some people want more than that. They want their truth to be the public truth, and therein lies a problem of immense force: think of the differences between Christianity and Islam, between both of them and, say, Buddhism.

Dowd defines God as "the Ultimate Whole of Reality" (p. 77) and a wonderful definition it is! How tiny, how petty, how insignificant and sadly anthropomorphic seem the lesser gods! Dowd writes, "God cannot be limited to the world we humans can sense, measure, and comprehend: Ultimate Reality transcends and includes all that we can possibly know, experience, and even imagine." (p. 109) He goes on to reveal that the God he believes in is like the God of the Vedas, Ineffable and indescribable: "Any 'God' that can be believed in or not believed in is a trivialized notion of the divine." (p. 109)

Dowd calls the Big Bang of cosmology the "Great Radiance," and again what a way with words and ideas he has. He involves us all personally with the cosmic act of creation by reminding us that we are star dust, that we are the universe becoming conscious of itself. This identification with all of creation is a marvelous thing. Instead of narrowing identifying with only our group or nation or religion how much better it is to identify with the entire cosmos. There is great sense of freedom and wonder in doing so, and how petty seem these worldly conflicts when measured against the stars.

One of Dowd's most compelling and wondrous ideas is to recognize that the entire universe is evolving. He writes, quoting physicist Brian Swimme, "Earth, once molten rock, now sings opera." (p. 121) And we are an integral part of that evolution. Instead of being alone in a vast, uncaring, mindless universe, we are "a mode of being...an expression of the Universe. We didn't come into the world; we grew out from it, like a peach grows out of a peach tree." (pp. 120-121)

In short, what Michael Dowd has done in this remarkable book is to reconcile science with the tenets of the ancient religions, especially the Christianity he was born into. In a sense this a distinction between what he calls "flat-earth" Christianity and "evolutionary" Christianity. Throughout Dowd demonstrates a strikingly thorough understanding of evolutionary psychology, cognitive science and neuroscience, not to mention cosmology and even some physics. I say "strikingly" because it is so rare for someone formally trained in theology to have such a broad education. After this book achieves the kind of currency I expect it to achieve, perhaps the clergy will be respected (as they once were) as truly knowledgeable people.

--Dennis Littrell, author of “Understanding Evolution and Ourselves”

[Kirsten Lansberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes the radical position that science and religion can coexist! *GASP* Is it possible? Can we accept the science of evolution and still be religious people? Can we trust that humans evolved over millions of years without insulting god? Michael Dowd and his wife seem to think so as they have made careers out of preaching their "evolutionary evangelism" across the country. Michael, a reverend who has been associated with several Christian denominations, and his wife Connie, an author of scientific texts, were at odds with one another early in their relationship. This book tells a beautiful tale of how they reconciled their belief systems and teach others how to do the same. I LOVE THIS BOOK.

[Dennis A. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A much needed re-statement of Christianity in 21st century language and thought forms. Well done.

[John Martindale · Rating 1 out of 5]

So the universe is god and finally after billions of years of evolution god finally became conscious of himself via human beings. I know, i know... it is pretty dang cool when one thinks about it.

We humans can feel really super duper special because we're made of stardust, oh my gosh... tears form in my eyes when I think about how like overwhelmingly amazing it is...sniff...sniff...I mean I was going to shoot myself, like seriously, but once I learned I was made from the particles of long dead burning balls of gas, I found reason to keep living. Thank you Carl Sagan, Thank you Michael Dowd, I owe y'all my vary life.

So yeah, even though there is no basis for morality, truth or ultimate meaning, we can just ignore these daytime facts, and pretend like there is, which is pretty sweet. Really, who cares that there is no actual God, for all we need, in order to be religiously fulfilled is to ignore the fact that the cosmos is completely impersonal and indifferent, and to imitate the New Agers by putting all our hope, faith and trust in the universe, it will definitely make us feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Even though there is no factual basis our "night-time" religious language, all the groundless metaphorical nonsense will make us feel good inside while we live out our extremely brief meaningless existence that ends in nothingness. The good new is the universe created us to be able to live out-of-sync with reality and to find shapes in the clouds that comfort and give purpose to our lives.

Since we are part of the universe and the universe is god, it is pretty good for the self-esteem, for when we worship the universe we are building ourselves up. Seriously try it out, worship will never have felt this good and affirming.

It is also nice to know that we need not look down on ourselves, I mean the universe formed us so that rape, infanticide, and socially destructive behavior is normal. So though there is now a mismatch considering the world we now live in, at least we don't need to feel shame for being who the universe made us to be. All the while though, morality is always evolving, so we can rejoice that we are more morally enlightened than our ancestors and will continually become more and more ethically righteous; fighting against global warming, caring for endangered specials and establishing gender equality.

So yeah, anything that does line up with this beautiful gospel of evolution is flat-earth nonsense, which will soon be recognized as such in the near future by Christians and even Muslims according to prophet Dowd. This of course is the case because nothing is more compelling than the good news of evolution, it is so good that eventually even all the Muslims will recognize that the universe is Allah and embrace the new evolutionary religion. So yes, hallelujah! Let the evolution revival began!

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Call this book a victim of my own evolving thoughts (har har) on Evolution.

When I first added this to my "to be read" pile, I was on the cusp of embracing the idea of reconciling Faith with Science, growing beyond a more fundamentalist biblical reading of the origin text (Bible, book of Genesis), and being thrilled at the idea of an intelligent person of faith not having to come across as a rube for simply having a faith at all.

Since then, I've embraced fully the idea that "God used Evolution to create the world". And at this point I'm less than done with hoping to reason (har har) with people who insist on a literal reading of the origin text. I have no interest in trying to change their "minds".

And so with some maturity on my part, the author comes across as a bit of a "look how enlightened and Liberal and open minded I am that I can reconcile Faith and Science!". Which frankly was where *I* was at when I first considered the topic.

But certainly this could be a great book for a Fundamentalist with a functional adult IQ.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This type of writing has been needed for quite a while. It became apparent to me a few years ago that at some point in the future the Bible writings and scientific discoveries had to merge together in some fashion. The author claims that the only new revelations in the last 2,000 years were scientific (evidence based), which is not correct for all religions (spiritual based). He lays out a forecast of critical events/circumstances that the world will need to address in the next 250 years. However, he does not even mention the possibility that those issues might be addressed through the second coming of Jesus Christ, until the last chapter or two. Never-the-less it is a good book to broaden one’s perspective for bringing the world together, but it cannot be done without a central form of government for the entire world.

[Erwin Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Michael Dowd’s Thank God for Evolution is rather inspirational and informative. It addresses aspects of our religious lives that many don’t normally think about. It’s a basic fact that many of those who are religious are that way based on tradition. They are following in the footsteps of their parents, grandparents and great grandparents. That’s how they become Roman Catholics, Episcopalians, Lutherans, Methodists, Presbyterians, Mormons, Seventh Day Adventists, Fundamentalists and the like. Some might even be believers in other faith traditions like Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism, Daoism, Shintoism or any other of the many indigenous sects worldwide.
The bedrock of these belief systems are based on their faith’s scripture. This scripture whether it’s the Torah, Talmud, Old and New Testaments, the Quran, or Indian holy books were written thousands of years ago. They don’t reflect contemporary times. They aren’t scientific. Many of the stories are myths and are grounded in the revelations of prophets. Dowd argues why should only these works be holy and used as guideposts for these religions while scientific knowledge is pushed aside? That’s why he’s advocating a synthesis of religion and science to correct this misconception.
Dowd sees scripture as “night language” and science “day language.” The former is subjective and the latter is objective. He writes that the originators of the scriptures who lived thousands of years ago would not be knowledgeable of the scientific realities that people know today. Dowd explains that scientific developments are based on evolution that he feels should also be considered scripture – the modern day revelation of God. To him this revelation is ongoing it has never stopped, but has taken on a new form.
Dowd, an evolutionary theist doesn’t consider the scriptures of the past as being new in any sense. He recognizes that it is still relevant in telling us many things about life. But because they were formulated ages ago they don’t speak correctly about our present circumstances, but only science could. So when believers look at the New Testament as the gospel of good news they are mistaken. According to Dowd the new understanding about life isn’t only found in ancient texts but in all scientific discoveries that’s the bedrock of truth. To Dowd truth is God’s language. And science is mankind’s best source of Reality.

[Patrick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good, inspirational look into evolutionary history, deep time, and how it can transform the way we view the world and live our lives. This book helped me in my journey of appreciated the awe and wonder of being alive and where life has been and where it is going.

[Dr. Brent · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book!

Wow...this was an incredible journey. I reconciled more my "religion" with my "science" through Thomas' journey. He introduced several new concepts to me, though they make perfect sense. Kudos to Reverend Dowd!

[Tami Chesnut · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book introduced me to a new way of thinking about evolution and religion. I want to learn more...

[Tom Corrigan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This amazing book brings together my thinking of evolution and my belief system. Only read if you want your thinking to be challenged.

[Anna SJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed learning concepts of god as emergent creativity or the ultimate holon of the universe.

[Randy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moves beyond the false dichotomy of science vs. faith, showing how one can complement the other. Discusses evolution not only in the biological sense, but also on personal and societal levels.

[Lyndi Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author finds compatibility and even proof in evolution and God theories. Very inspiring.

[Tom Talamantez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have heard of this book for a while now, so when I found a new copy at a Goodwill bookstore, I decided to take a look. The first thing I noticed was that the book has several pages of endorsements, but not one of the endorsements is from any organization that affirms the essential doctrine of Infallibility of the Bible. Most religious endorsements are from organizations that advocate liberal theology or unitarianism, but nothing Christian. The best way that I can describe this book is an 80 car pile-up of pluralism. If you know anything about Biblical Christianity, you will quickly see many problems with this book. Dowd defines God as anything you want it to be or not be. He refers to God as the Ultimate Reality, so he basically hijacked Paul Tillich’s theology of nothing in particular. Dowd’s attempt to reconcile Christianity with evolution fails miserably, but he tries to do it at the expense of essential Christian doctrines. The truth is that any notion of theistic evolution fails theologically, scientifically and exegetically. Even contemporary theology has abandoned failed ideas like the Gap Theory. Dowd’s portrayal of Christianity is a strawman of actual Christianity and he himself does not consider the Bible to be the Word of God, but uses it for his purposes. Apparently Dowd wrote this book as a way to try and show his wife, an evolutionist, that the two worldviews could be reconciled. Dowd makes the mistake that defines liberal theology, that is to pick and choose verses that support your ideology and discard the verses you are uncomfortable with. Why include Christianity at all if you don’t actually believe it??? To get anything out of this book, you truly have to check your brain at the door. This book could serve as a case study in logical fallacies or isogesis. Even fuzzy logic says “don’t drag me into this train wreck.” I would not attempt to defend evolution as it is indefensible, but as evolution serves as the rationale for atheism, I would imagine that atheists will also find this book annoying. This book will go on the shelf with other time wasters such as punctuated equilibrium, hopeful monster theory, swoon theory, gap theory (none of which are theories), the Wellhausen Hypothesis and other non-sense. One star for writing a book.

[Marshall · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book attempts to reconcile religion and science, particularly Christianity and evolution. I assumed it would just try to twist the Bible enough to squeeze it into a claim that God invented evolution, which would be absurd. I was pleasantly surprised that he didn't even try to justify the Bible's absurdities.

Instead, he kind of swerved around the whole issue by making a very interesting and persuasive case for the difference between "day language and night language" or "public revelation and private revelation." In other words, science is the best way to discover how nature works, but mythology can be helpful for us to relate to those discoveries. The Bible is mythology while "facts are God's native tongue." God, in day language, can simply be the universe, or "ultimate reality." In night language, he can be however you relate to him best. In this way, God has been speaking to us all along, and science is just a more effective translator.

I was also worried that this book would be jam packed with pseudoscience, but he was actually pretty dead-on with the science. It turns out those sections were written by his wife, who is a science writer by profession. Those were the best parts of this book, though I wish evolution was spelled out better for those coming from a creationist perspective that simply don't understand evolution.

The book goes downhill from there. It's mostly repetitive, spiritual pep talks that use both Christianity's "night language" and evolution's "day language" to give cliche tips for better living. It's not bad, really. Just cheesy, overly enthusiastic, and way too long.

I'd certainly recommend this book to any Christian who is grappling with their faith in the face of scientific discoveries. For the atheists, whom this author also thinks would benefit greatly, there's not much here.

[Kipahni · Rating 4 out of 5]

I went to a medical conference once and the man that spoke said "Change the stories told and retold in a society and you Change the society" He was refering to his work in Hati and the reforsting of once barren land.

This book is attempting to do just that. By reinterpeting and putting a more wholistic meaning (through science) into religion and it's stories, it will eventually change society (instead of thinking I am seperate, apart and above of nature, with the process of evolution I see I am part of, and co-responsible with nature)

wouldn't reccomend this book for atheist and I wouldn't reccomend it for Literal Bible readers (or literal any religion), but I find it a refreshing look at the harmony of science and religion. He isn't saying we should get rid of relgion, nor is he saying that science isn't valid because it's not scripture... nor is he even using science as a way of proving one form of religion more superior over another.

He is saying that science can be the spring board for finding equality with all religions. Which I find so refreshing in this world of US vs. Them

Downfalls;
He WAS a pastor, so he uses a lot of christian lingo, I would have liked to have seen other relgious incorperation and how evolution would be meaningful for a buddhist or muslim

And since he was a pastor the book sometimes reads like the books I had to read in my charismatic college class- which mainly is if something is written in bold or italic or repeated enough then it must be true.

Other then that I highly reccomend it.

[Daniel LeFebvre · Rating 1 out of 5]

While Mr. Dowd had a few decent points throughout the book, it was painfully obvious that his point of view is the result of a strained attempt to force his Christian upbringing and his wife's scientific background to somehow mix. This especially is brought to light when, towards the end of the book, Mr. Dowd admits that he believes "scripture" is anything that supports his claims (i.e., that he feels "brings him closer to God/the universe"). He freely admits that he discards portions of the Christian Bible if they don't support his point of view. He also dismisses any scientific data that doesn't support his Christian beliefs. So basically he set out trying to find a way to mix evolution and Christianity and, surprise surprise, he found a way to do that by throwing out any evidence that contradicts his beliefs. I would only recommend this book to someone who is extremely strong in their beliefs and is wanting to find out how sneaky and smooth evangelists of any religion can be.

[Mark Holencik · Rating 3 out of 5]

His scientific telling of the history of the universe helped me understand some of my beliefs and assumptions. His trying to meld science and the bible are very helpful, as I believe there is no difference between science and God. I have come to this belief through my thoughts not any teaching or reading till now.

I let the things I can not comprehend or disagree with drop to the floor. This allows me to gleen information that helps me resolve my own questions and beliefs.

His statements that we need to throw out the Old Testament and most of the New Testament to evolve into a truer understanding of God had to drop to the floor.

One statement that most have found offensive is that God is the universe, I have always believed this since childhood. I found most to the book helpful.

[Richard · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dowd does a good job of integrating the work of theologians like Bultmann and Tillich with the evolving insights of science about the origins of the universe, earth, life and the human species. He does it in a way that allows mainstream Christian laity to reinvent and honor the gospel while fully and unconditionally embracing the ever-increasing insights modern science delivers about how the universe -- and everything in it -- actually works. If you are a fundamentalist who insists on reading the bible as a news report (biblical literalism) - don't bother. If you didn't grow up in a Christian environment, don't bother. If you're bothered by the implied supernaturalism of the way the Christian story is recited in the liturgy and teaching of your local church -- you might find this a worthwhile read.