Science and the Spirit: A Pentecostal Engagement with the Sciences [Paperback]

James K. A. Smith (Editor), Amos Yong (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 26, 2010

What might be described as a Pentecostal worldview has become a powerful cultural phenomenon, but it is often at odds with modernity and globalization. Science and the Spirit confronts questions of spirituality in the face of contemporary science. The essays in this volume illustrate how Pentecostalism can usefully engage with technology and scientific discovery and consider what might be distinctive about a Pentecostal dialogue with the sciences. The authors conclude that Pentecostals, with their unique perspectives on spirituality, can contribute new insights for a productive interaction between theology and science.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Science and the Spirit should be required reading not only for undergraduates committed to various Pentecostal traditions, but to all who have an interest in the engagement of faith traditions with the sciences in a manner that respects and deepens the appreciation of both while denying neither." —Ralph W. Hood, Jr., The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

(Ralph W. Hood, Jr., The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga 2011)

"This book illustrates something of the current, very preliminary, engagement that is beginning to take place between Pentecostal Christians and 'science' very broadly defined. It is a significant project." —Douglas Jacobsen, Messiah College

(Douglas Jacobsen, Messiah College )

"This book is a sign that the Spirit still initiates wonder. In fact, science may need to embrace the Spirit described in this book as much as Pentecostals need to embrace the natural wold also described herein. This volume puts the Ghost back in the machine—and in all creation, for that matter." —Thomas Jay Oord, Northwest Nazarene University

(Thomas Jay Oord, Northwest Nazarene University )

"Argues for a healthy relationship between science and Pentecostalism." —Denis Lamoureux, University of Alberta

(Denis Lamoureux, University of Alberta )

This is an interesting and surprising volume: surprising because as a collection written by Pentecostals primarily for Pentecostals it is published by a respected university press; interesting because it provides a rare introduction to an impassioned plea for a dialogue characterized by counterintuitive accommodations. Consistently granting the counterintuitive nature of a cooperative conversation between cutting-edge science and Pentecostal theology, these essays surprise the reader by extracting accommodations to much of contemporary science from what is described as Pentecostal theological principles (which hardly appear representative of most Pentecostals). Hence the complementary accommodation: this volume is explicitly intended for the Pentecostal college student, and its essays propose that this audience can find accommodation for both what is conceded as necessary, a 'methodological naturalism' in the practice of science, and for the pervasive spirit. This attempted accommodation will certainly strike some as dancing surprisingly close to panentheism. Ultimately, this volume is not about science or the spirit; it is about constructing Pentecostal identity in the modern world, which explains both its intended audience and the difficulty of classifying it. Thus understood, it may prove to be most interesting to anthropologists, sociologists, and historians of religion. Summing Up: Recommended. Researchers/faculty and professionals/practitioners. -- ChoiceJ. C. Hanges, Miami University, April 2011

(J. C. Hanges, Miami University )

"These books represent a body of important work and an ecumenical challenge for theologians and religious leaders... We can be grateful to the scholars and editors for making these resources available in a readable but richly researched set of volumes." —JOURNAL of ECUMENICAL STUDIES, Vol. 46, No. 1 (Winter, 2011)

(JOURNAL of ECUMENICAL STUDIES )

"This is a very interesting collection of articles that explore questions of spirituality in the light of contemporary science and technology.... Each of these papers is helpful in addressing crucial questions at the interface of science and Pentecostal spirituality." —Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith

(Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith )

About the Author

James K. A. Smith is Professor of Philosophy at Calvin College.

Amos Yong is J. Rodman Williams Professor of Theology at Regent University School of Divinity.

Product Details

• Paperback: 230 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (August 26, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253222273
• ISBN-13: 978-0253222275
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,371,710 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good but very Specific Introduction, December 20, 2010

By 

Daniel Kam (Santa Maria) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Science and the Spirit: A Pentecostal Engagement with the Sciences (Hardcover)

When you first pick up the book, it has a very catchy title. I am not from a pentecostal background, but I have been on the fringes of it in different parts of my life and I have always found their style of worship and belief system very interesting.

This book is a great introduction to undergraduate students struggling with how to integrate your faith with science. It does not provide much greater detail than what you might get in any other intro to science vs. religion textbook. And that really what it is: a textbook. It is good because the book comes from a variety of pentecostal perspectives.

The first section deals with "the big questions" of science and pentecostalism. The first chapter, by Telford Work deals with how the Galapagos (science) should interact with Jerusalem (religion). While there are some good insights from Telford's work, I found his chapter too insistent on categorizing and separating science and faith into higher and lower knowledge. The talk of faith being a "higher" or "secret" knowledge seemed more gnostic than Christian. Smith's chapter on "surprise" in the natural world is a much more informative chapter on how science is not necessarily incompatible with theology, but that naturalism (where nature is all there is) tends to be too firm and resistant to religion for there to be any kind of real dialogue. The third chapter is also quite informative in its discussion of how the different sciences can help us interpret the meaning of glossolia and other distinctly pentecostal traditions.

The second section of the book looks into questions of natural science. In chapter four, Vondey talks about how--following in the footsteps of Einstein and Newton--there is a possibility for discussion of a "spirit" when dealing with science and the universe. Vondey, in sometimes verbose and scientific language, tries to describe why both Einstein and Newton fall short of truly engaging in a truly theological engagement with science. He ends by saying that there needs to be discussion between pentecostals and physicists--but admits that theology will probably not provide the answers that physicists are looking for. Badger and Tenneson talk about the diverse beliefs pentecostals hold in trying to bring science and the spirit together, and they also talk about the various ways this plays out in pentecostal churches. Ware, on the other hand, discusses neuroimaging and consciousness in relation to pentecostal experience, and comes to the conclusion that while science provides some explanation for religious experience, it should not be pentecostal's primary reason for their belief. Calbreath deals with the relationship between psychology and pentecostalism and tries to talk about the many ways the too have fought over the years and how the two might come together.

The third section deals with social sciences and technology. Scandrett-Leatherman talks about the relationship between anthropology and afro-centric churches as both being involved in participation as the central way to learn new things. Poloma talks about the postmodern task of trying to integrate spirit and sociology with the conclusion that both can be integrated because, just as sociology is constantly changing, truth in terms of the spirit is constantly evolving because faith is a journey. Finally, the book ends with some thoughts from Cheek on the dominance of technology in pentecostal churches. He ends talking about six principles that may help us further use technology in a responsible fashion.

The book covers such a variety of topics, that I would only really be able to suggest it to a foundations level classroom at a Christian University that tends toward the pentecostal perspective. The professor would probably have to pick an choose which topics to cover because some of the authors are verbose and use very content-heavy language which might be confusing to first-time freshmen. Because of the limited audience, I am not sure how good this book would be for most introductory level foundations of ministry courses.