Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, and Meaning [Hardcover]

Nancy Pearcey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2010

Is secularism a positive force in the modern world? Or does it lead to fragmentation and disintegration? In Saving Leonardo, best-selling award-winning author Nancy Pearcey (Total Truth, coauthor How Now Shall We Live?) makes a compelling case that secularism is destructive and dehumanizing.

Pearcey depicts the revolutionary thinkers and artists, the ideas and events, leading step by step to the unleashing of secular worldviews that undermine human dignity and liberty. She crafts a fresh approach that exposes the real-world impact of ideas in philosophy, science, art, literature, and film--voices that surround us in the classroom, in the movie theater, and in our living rooms.

A former agnostic, Pearcey offers a persuasive case for historic Christianity as a holistic and humane alternative. She equips readers to counter the life-denying worldviews that are radically restructuring society and pervading our daily lives. Whether you are a devoted Christian, determined secularist, or don't know quite where you stand, reading Saving Leonardo will unsettle established views and topple ideological idols. Includes more than 100 art reproductions and illustrations that bring the book's themes to life.

Praise for Saving Leonardo:

"A feast for the mind and for the eye. Nancy Pearcey not only is a trustworthy guide for a nuanced discussion on the relationship between culture and the gospel, but she is a gifted teacher as well . . . Saving Leonardo is a rare, precious gift to the churches and universities alike."

Makoto Fujimura, artist and author of Refractions: A Journey of Faith, Art, and Culture

"Nancy Pearcey has done it again and better than ever. She has taken the complex sophistication of the best cultural analysis and laid it out for any person to grasp, enjoy and use to live out their daily lives honoring Christ. An astounding accomplishment!"

James W. Sire, author of The Universe Next Door

"G. K. Chesterton said 'the danger when Men stop believing in God is not that they'll believe in nothing; but that they will believe in anything.' Nancy Pearcey understands where believing in anything leads and in this book she reveals where a secular philosophy is taking us. A balanced, fair, and impacting work!"

Cal Thomas, syndicated and USA Today columnist

"Nancy Pearcey helps a new generation of evangelicals to understand the worldview challenges we now face and to develop an intelligent and articulate Christian understanding . . . Saving Leonardo should be put in the hands of all those who should always be ready to give an answer--and that means all of us."

R. Albert Mohler, Jr., president, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

"Nancy Pearcey is an intellectual prophet in our day and one of Evangelicalism's foremost cultural observers. Saving Leonardo is a tour de force. In it, Pearcey provides a penetrating analysis of the nature of contemporary secularism, a helpful exposition of how we got to the present situation, and a well-crafted strategy for changing the situation. This is her best effort yet . . . a must read."

J. P. Moreland, distinguished professor of Philosophy, Biola University and author of The God Question

"Nancy Pearcey is unsurpassed in the current generation of Christian thinkers . . . The magic continues with this book. Pearcey's virtues as a writer and thinker are once again fully evident in the range of material that she has mastered, the encyclopedic collection of data that she presents, and the analytic rigor with which she separates truth from error in worldviews. She is a prophetic voice for contemporary Christians."

Leland Ryken, Clyde S. Kilby professor of English, Wheaton College

"Brilliant . . . The book brings complex, abstract ideas down-to-earth -- or rather, down-to-life. . . . Saving Leonardo bridges the gaps between the arts and the sciences, the theoretical and the practical. The book not only argues for the unity of Christian truth but exemplifies that unity and shows it in action."

Gene Edward Veith, provost, Patrick Henry College

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nancy Pearcey wrote Saving Leonardo while serving as research profes­sor of Worldview Studies at Philadelphia Biblical University. Pearcey studied Christian worldview at L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland with Francis Schaeffer, and was later named the Francis A. Schaeffer Scholar at the World Journalism Institute in New York City. She earned a masters degree from Covenant Theological Seminary, and pursued further graduate work in the History of Philosophy at the Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto. Pearcey has been a commentator on Public Square Radio, the founding editor of the daily radio program "BreakPoint," and has appeared on NPR and C-SPAN. Currently she is a fellow at the Discovery Institute and editor-at-large of The Pearcey Report. She coauthored a column in Christi­anity Today, and has authored or contrib­uted to several books, including The Soul of Science and How Now Shall We Live? (with Charles Colson, contributions by Harold Fickett). Her most recent book was the bestselling Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity, which won the 2005 ECPA Gold Me­dallion Award for best book of the year on Christianity & Society.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: B&H Books (September 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1433669277
• ISBN-13: 978-1433669279
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #23,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Nancy Pearcey is the director of the Francis Schaeffer Center at Houston Baptist University, where she is also professor and scholar in residence. A former agnostic, she studied Christian worldview at L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland with Francis Schaeffer, and was later named the Francis A. Schaeffer Scholar at the World Journalism Institute in New York City. She earned a masters degree from Covenant Theological Seminary, and pursued further graduate work in the History of Philosophy at the Institute for Christian Studies in Toronto. Pearcey has been a commentator on Public Square Radio, the founding editor of the daily radio program "BreakPoint," and has appeared on NPR and C-SPAN. Currently she is a fellow at the Discovery Institute and editor-at-large of The Pearcey Report. She coauthored a column in Christianity Today, and has authored or contributed to several books, including The Soul of Science and How Now Shall We Live? (with Charles Colson, contributions by Harold Fickett), and the bestselling Total Truth: Liberating Christianity from Its Cultural Captivity, which won the 2005 ECPA Gold Medallion Award for best book of the year on Christianity & Society. She wrote her latest book, Saving Leonardo, while serving as research professor of Worldview Studies at Philadelphia Biblical University.

Pearcey has taught several homeschool courses for high schoolers, most recently a course based on her new book, Saving Leonardo: A Call to Resist the Secular Assault on Mind, Morals, & Meaning. She discovered that making the concepts clear and accessible to high schoolers made the book more fun to read for everyone else too. She has decided that teens make the best editors, and from now on, she hopes to teach all her books to teens before they are published.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

73 of 80 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars THE NEW MASTERPIECE: SAVING LEONARDO August 27, 2010

By Dr. David Steele

Format:Hardcover

Nancy Pearcey has done it again. Her book Total Truth captured the attention of thousands and helped equip a new generation of thinking Christians. While some consider the term "thinking Christian" somewhat of an oxymoron (think, "military intelligence," or "jumbo shrimp"), nothing could be further from the truth. Indeed, clear thinking and warm-hearted devotion are crucial characteristics for anyone who professes faith in Christ. Anyone who rejects the notion of a "thinking Christian" should pause and consider the thought process generated in order to make the claim!

Pearcey's newest masterpiece, Saving Leonardo is as the subtitle suggests a call to resist the secular assault on mind, morals, and meaning. The primary assertion: "The only hope lies in a worldview that is rationally defensible, life affirming, and rooted in creation itself."

THE THREAT OF GLOBAL SECULARISM

In part one, author clearly articulates the necessity of a Christ-informed worldview. She challenges readers: "Do you have the tools to detect the ideas competing for your allegiance in movies, school textbooks, news broadcasts, and even Saturday morning cartoons?"

Pearcey reveals the goal of the book at the outset: "The goal of this book is to equip you to detect, decipher, and defeat the monolithic secularism that is spreading rapidly and imposing its values on your family and hometown." As such, she calls Christians to abandon the "fortress mentality" that has been prominent for years; a mentality that gravitates to isolation from the world. Rather, Christ followers ought to become familiar with their audience and engage with them on a worldview level. "The first step," writes Pearcey, "is to identify and counter the key strategies uses to advance the global secular worldview."

Next, Christians must understand how secularism views the nature of truth. Pearcey demonstrates how empiricism has spawned what we know today as the fact/value split. This divided concept of truth is the most important feature of a secular approach to epistemology and is "the key to unlocking the history of the Western mind." The author is quick to explain the biblical concept of truth; a notion that was the theme of Total Truth: "Because all things were created by a single divine mind, all truth forms a single, coherent, mutually consistent system. Truth is unified and universal."

The fact/value dichotomy finds values in the so-called upper story (a scheme developed by Francis Schaeffer). These values are private, subjective, and relative. Values include religious claims and personal preferences. Fact are found in the lower story. These facts are public, objective and universal. The author gives numerous examples of how the fact/value dichotomy is diametrically opposed to the biblical view of truth. For instance:

* "Science deals mainly with facts; religion deals mainly with values." - Martin Luther King Jr.

* "Science yields facts but not 'value judgments'; religion expresses values but cannot 'speak facts.'" - Albert Einstein

Clearly, values posed in the fact/value dichotomy are never considered to be true. Rather they are expressions of an opinionated individual; i.e. a so-called "bigoted Christian."

TWO PATHS TO SECULARISM

Part two uncovers two paths to secularism, namely, the Enlightenment and Romantic movements respectively. The Enlightenment (or Analytic Tradition) is fixated on reason and relies on the scientific method. Immanuel Kant plays a central role here with his nature/freedom dichotomy. Various worldviews have been spawned as a result of Enlightenment thought including empiricism, rationalism, Darwinism, logical positivism, linguistic analysis, utilitarianism, and materialism.

The Romantic stream (or Continental Tradition) relies on story and is fascinated by myth and imagination. Again, various worldviews have resulted including idealism, Marxism, deconstruction, phenomenology, existentialism, pantheism, and postmodernism. Both streams are reductionistic and the author is careful to bring this point home repeatedly.

Pearcey dissects both streams carefully and skillfully. Her depth and insight is very helpful and encouraging. The final two chapters are the most helpful and practical. The author prompts readers to give up the typical Christian fortress mentality: "Christians must go beyond criticizing the degradation of American culture, roll up their sleeves, and get to work on positive solutions. The only way to drive out bad culture is with good culture."

The author reminds Christian parents that they cannot protect their children from unbiblical worldviews. But they can "help them develop resistance skills, by giving them the tools to recognize false ideas and counter them with a solid grasp of biblical concepts ... Christians are responsible for evaluating everything against the plumb line of Scriptural truth."

Nancy Pearcey is picking up where Francis Scheaffer left off. And she gives Schaeffer the last word on the subject: "One of the greatest injustice we do our young people is to ask them to be conservative. Christianity is not conservative, but revolutionary ... We must teach the young to be revolutionaries, revolutionaries against the status quo."

Saving Leonardo will likely win the Gold Medallion award in 2010. It's that good!

4.5 stars
www.baldreformer.wordpress.com

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Coping with Elitism in Art September 21, 2011

By Peter Baklava

Format:Hardcover

Q. How do you become the youngest artist to get a full-floor show at the Whitney Museum?

A. You hack into the program codes of discarded video games. You retrieve the "wallpaper" design of clouds that paraded behind the "Super Mario Brothers". You project it on the gallery wall. Voile'! You're a GENIUS!!

I preface this review by noting that I am a liberal, and I fully expected to dislike "Saving Leonardo" intensely. Instead, I often found myself in full agreement with it.

Here's what I agreed with: It IS important to understand the philosophical bases underlying art, music, and culture. Reconnecting art with the spiritual is also important. "Saving Leonardo", better than most art texts or art historians dare to, elucidates the connections between art, science, and metaphysical ideas.

Pearcey is also correct that many young students come out of college with no critical powers of reasoning. The art department is the most politically correct place you will find on any college campus. Students often emerge from it thinking they are revolutionaries, when in fact they are reactionaries. There is currently a "war" on the traditional art object, like a brush-created painting in a frame or a piece of figurative sculpture. Students are encouraged to believe that conceptual and postmodern art, possibly composed entirely of appropriated junk (things the artist procured or "found" but had no hand in creating) , is actually far superior to traditional forms of art.

It's hard not to feel that the most successful, most lauded, or most visible art created these days is often some kind of simple or elaborate stunt. "Art is whatever we say it is", Andy Warhol propounded. Art is whatever you can sell someone. It is the apotheosis of elitism. Elitism, thy name is contemporary art.

On those concerns, I do agree heavily with Nancy Pearcey. However, that's as far as it goes. After going through a complete analysis of art up to postmodernism, she barely touches on contemporary art, providing no examples besides a few installations that are decades old. Then she instead diverts her attention to popular culture like movies (I think movies receive enough honest criticism in this society-- but art doesn't), and proceeds to dilute her own focus. She also further mystifies "postmodernism", which is already a buzzword far removed from its original meaning, by applying it to the bedroom.

She doesn't propose censorship, but she does seem to hint at it. And therein lies the problem. You cannot restrict creativity, because it is the foundation of a free society. When you limit art to "Christian alternatives", you do young people an extreme disservice. The examples of contemporary "Christian art" Pearcey provides actually pale in comparison with the rest of the examples of art in the book (the ones that she asks readers to judge by worldview, not beauty.)

The fact is that Mark Rothko's art is spiritual, even if it is not Christian per se. People should be free to enjoy whatever delights the eye, because that is what art is about. It either works or it doesn't.

My belief is that art must rest on a bedrock of craft. Art should be skillful. I don't entirely trust the marketplace to winnow out bad art---not when kitsch (literally, bad taste)has become a very marketable fad-- and I hate the elitists that tell me the evidence of what my own eyes see can't tell me what good art is. I know good art when I see it.

Nancy Pearcey recommends a "worldview detector". I just prefer the good old fashioned B.S. detector, which has always worked very well for me.

40 of 48 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Are You Aware Of The Profound Effects Of "Secularism"? August 28, 2010

By Daniel L. Marler

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

"Saving Leonardo" has just become one of the most underlined and highlighted books I own!

Okay, I only own 5 books, but still...

My experience with Nancy Pearcey's writing is primarily based on her previous book, "Total Truth"--which is outstanding. I find her, once again, to be insightful, intellectually challenging, very interesting, and a brilliant analyst of culture--both historical culture and contemporary culture.

In "Saving Leonardo", Pearcey describes, in compelling ways, why the increasing "secularism" in our world is a serious problem. She makes the point that secularism is even a problem for those who do not consider themselves to be religious. She writes, "Because the word `secular' is the opposite of `religious', many people assume that secularism is a problem for religious groups only. Not so. When politics loses its moral dimension, we all lose. When political discourse is debased, the entire society suffers. The reason Christians should be concerned is not to protect their own subculture, but to protect the democratic process for all people."

Pearcey expands in helpful ways on the concept of the "fact/value split" about which she wrote in "Total Truth". She identifies the fact/value split as the "core of modern secularism". Read the book for her able defense of that contention.

In Part 2 of "Saving Leonardo", she addresses two paths to secularism--"originating in the clash between the Enlightenment and the Romantic movement"--in which she traces the "historical rise of secularism".

To demonstrate the effects of secularism on Western culture, Pearcey provides many examples of specific works of art ranging from literature, to painting, to music, to sculpture, to film, and more, explaining how they have contributed to secularism or how they display, knowingly or un-knowingly, the results of secularism's steadily increasing influence.

I found her thoughts on "Artists as Thinkers" to be interesting. She writes, "The truth is that artists interact deeply with the thought of their day, translating worldviews into stories and images." Pearcey correctly identifies "art"--in its many manifestations--as a field of significant influence. And perhaps it is more influential than many Christians realize or acknowledge.

Since I have not studied art in any serious, comprehensive way, there were a number of things I learned in Part 2 of the book. Actually, now that I think of it, it would be more accurate to say that EVERYTHING in Part 2 of the book involved new learning for me...except the page numbering. I was pretty familiar with that concept from the other 5 books I own.

I highly recommend "Saving Leonardo". Nancy Pearcey is brilliant.

Dan Marler
Oak Lawn, IL