Provides meaningful, accessible contributions to the science vs. creation debate, but “proof” continues to be elusive.
In his debut foray into religious writing, Bunting puts his scientific background to work in examining how the Judeo-Christian Creation story can be reconciled with modern understandings of origins.
Throughout this highly accessible offering, Bunting admits to his own long and, at times, uncomfortable journey from adherence to strict creationist concepts toward a more nuanced understanding that allows for conventional scientific theories on creation. Nevertheless, the author remains committed to his faith and to his belief in a creator God who also offers the promise of a personal relationship with the divine. After a short comparison of the Creation stories of various major faiths, Bunting explores the problematic issues arising from the Creation stories of the Bible. Among the most important points Bunting makes is the use of the Hebrew word yom in Genesis, which has traditionally been translated as “day,” but which could mean any period of time. In the context of a creation period lasting seven “days,” that knowledge is game-changing for the believer hoping to find bridges between biblical truth and scientific evidence. Later, Bunting tackles the problem of Adam and Eve’s creation being a mere 6,000 years ago, according to Genesis, while archaeology proves the existence of humans and humanoids for tens of thousands of years prior. Bunting believes that Adam was the first being endowed with God’s spirit, while other humanlike “animals” had existed long before. As the author puts it, “The truly significant event isn’t when God first created an intelligent being. The truly significant event is when God first breathed His spirit into such a being.” The author’s theory is an intriguing workaround, but it’s shaky at best and certainly bound to be controversial. Bunting faces a problem common to all modern thinkers attempting to reconcile faith and science—strong adherents to either extreme of the argument will not be so easily swayed. Nonetheless, Bunting has provided a thought-provoking work to counter the extremes of creationists and atheists alike. Above all else, this is a work of Christian apologetics, urging the reader to consider the big questions of existence and ultimate purpose in life, as well as what may come after death.
Provides meaningful, accessible contributions to the science vs. creation debate, but “proof” continues to be elusive.Pub Date: March 10, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-973653-14-1
Page Count: 204
Publisher: Westbow Press
Review Posted Online: Aug. 19, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
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