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Worshiping with Charles Darwin edition by Robert D Cornwall Religion Spirituality eBooks

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Worshiping with Charles Darwin edition by Robert D Cornwall Religion Spirituality eBooks

"Worshiping with Charles Darwin", by Bob Cornwall, was a refreshingly pleasant surprise for me. I was really intrigued by the subject matter and very impressed with how Cornwall addresses the subject of creation versus evolution in the public square today. He takes a position that I wholeheartedly agree with, namely, that science and religion are by no means incompatible and that they ask fundamentally different questions. Creationists and proponents of "intelligent design" hold positions that are inherently inconsistent with evolutionary theory. These positions lead not only to bad science but also to bad religion. Cornwall rightly notes that the creation stories in Genesis were never intended to be scientific accounts of how creation happened but are instead poetic accounts of God's agency in creation.

Because the book is a collection of sermons, articles, and essays that Cornwall has written over the years, it tends to repeat the same points. One of these is Cornwall's claim that he is not a scientist but a pastor and theologian. While this is true, he is familiar enough with evolutionary science to make some clear and accurate statements about it. One thing I would be very much interested in hearing more about is how he might describe his understanding of how God is at work in the process of evolutionary biology. How might one describe God as creator, affirm evolutionary process, and deny the claims of the "intelligent design" proponents all in one swoop? Perhaps Cornwall will address this issue more in future writing, but whether or not he does, this book powerfully makes the case that evolutionary science and faith are far from being mutually exclusive alternatives. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject and especially to Christians who are tempted to reject evolutionary science because they (mistakenly) think that their faith teaches them that it's wrong to accept it.


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Worshiping with Charles Darwin edition by Robert D Cornwall Religion Spirituality eBooks Reviews

I’m a fan of Robert Cornwall’s writing. It’s hard to overrate brevity, common sense, and simple honesty. Last year, one of his books made my Top Ten for 2012 See Faith in the Public Square.

In this book, Cornwall tackles the sticky subject of evolution. He writes as a theologian, not a scientist, but as one who recognizes his limited expertise and therefore respects and appreciates the contribution of scientists. Cornwall believes evolution is true not only because our greatest minds have offered convincing explanations, but because they have made great strides in medicine by building atop this biological knowledge. Cornwall believes the war between science and religion harms both sides, and that truth can best be approached by leaving the experts on each side to do their jobs without interference.

Cornwall is not alone in this opinion. A few years back, Dr. Michael Zimmerman penned a letter encouraging the compatibility of religion and science, and this letter has now garnered over 10,000 clergy signatures. “Evolution Sunday” was born, marking the closest Sunday to the birthday of Charles Darwin (February 12th), and at last count nearly 600 churches celebrated this day by using their worship service to address the issue, declaring that evolutionary science and faith are compatible.

Worshiping with Charles Darwin is a series of non-technical sermons and essays to that end. Many of the points and themes repeat in multiple sermons/essays, so there’s a bit of redundancy, yet I believe this book fills an important niche, with the theologian side of the war respectfully reaching out to make peace.
There are a few names unmentionable, at least in the positive sense, from the Christian pulpit. One of them, if not the main one of them, is Charles Darwin, the 19th century scientist many accuse of creating evolutionary science. But, there are more than a number of Christians who believe science and faith are co-habitable. This number, we hope, grows every day. And this is where the problem lies. Pastors are having a difficult time presenting science and faith together due to a lack of education on the topic or because they simply do not know how. There are plenty of books about science and faith, but only a few on how to use them together. There is one, however, incorporating them. Cornwall's book is a book of sermons and essays.

This is a pastoral account, almost like an autobiography, of bringing forth God's message out of the two books, Scripture and Nature. As one who has read Cornwall considerably, I am neither surprised nor let down at the amount of work in these sermons. They exist, ever etched into someone's mind, as a real method of worshiping the Most High God by celebrating how he formed the world. The book begins with a lengthy introduction wherein Cornwall tells you of his journey from Young Earth Creationism to this robust faith presented in this volume. Many of us who have traversed the same plane will recognize the same highway pit-stops along the way. This is not a story about someone losing their faith, but one where someone finds a faith richer and fuller than he has known before.

Following this are two parts, one with sermons and the other essays. Cornwall uses these short statements to explain further the relationship between faith and science. The sermons he delivered while the essays are former blogposts, all are crafted for both the subject and the audience. What does Cornwall really do? He doesn't destroy the Christian faith, as I imagine some of his detractors would accuse him of, but instead leads us along the way to a better, more honest faith.

To be frank, it is difficult to review sermons, although not all of the book is made up of sermons. Sermons are meant to be given rather than read. Even the poorest sermon can sound remarkable if given properly. So I will not judge them as such. Rather, when I read them I tried to see if they were accomplishing what Cornwall intended. He does the job well. The sermons are exactly what you expect from sermons — rooted in Scripture, rooted in the Christian faith, and yet applicable to the modern world. No doubt, this is going to be difficult for some to digest, but the sermons (and essays) approach the Christian as a Christian who is in need of moving forward. Yes, Cornwall declares, the Books of God are applicable, practical and compatible. I would hope, and pray, that more pastors seek to implement what Cornwall has done, else we subcumb to St. Augustine's warning about looking like fools for following superstitions (disguised as theology). God helps us and God bless Robert Cornwall.
"Worshiping with Charles Darwin", by Bob Cornwall, was a refreshingly pleasant surprise for me. I was really intrigued by the subject matter and very impressed with how Cornwall addresses the subject of creation versus evolution in the public square today. He takes a position that I wholeheartedly agree with, namely, that science and religion are by no means incompatible and that they ask fundamentally different questions. Creationists and proponents of "intelligent design" hold positions that are inherently inconsistent with evolutionary theory. These positions lead not only to bad science but also to bad religion. Cornwall rightly notes that the creation stories in Genesis were never intended to be scientific accounts of how creation happened but are instead poetic accounts of God's agency in creation.

Because the book is a collection of sermons, articles, and essays that Cornwall has written over the years, it tends to repeat the same points. One of these is Cornwall's claim that he is not a scientist but a pastor and theologian. While this is true, he is familiar enough with evolutionary science to make some clear and accurate statements about it. One thing I would be very much interested in hearing more about is how he might describe his understanding of how God is at work in the process of evolutionary biology. How might one describe God as creator, affirm evolutionary process, and deny the claims of the "intelligent design" proponents all in one swoop? Perhaps Cornwall will address this issue more in future writing, but whether or not he does, this book powerfully makes the case that evolutionary science and faith are far from being mutually exclusive alternatives. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in this subject and especially to Christians who are tempted to reject evolutionary science because they (mistakenly) think that their faith teaches them that it's wrong to accept it.