Paul Copan, Tremper Longman III, Christopher L. Reese, and Michael G. Strauss have put together a monstrous dictionary that seeks to investigate the interaction between science and the Christian faith.
Methodology
The scope of the dictionary is very wide-ranging and accessible to interested laypeople and experts alike. Over 140 leading scholars have contributed essays. The dictionary has three types of entries: Introductions outline the central facts about a given topic; Essays explore the implications of a topic under discussion; and finally, multiple-view discussions endeavor to represent a significant viewpoint which has stimulated disagreement in scientific and Christian thought. These entries are passionate, yet charitable and the scholars did not read opposing entries prior to the being published.
Assessment
The articles in this well bound hardcover are very well written and cover a wide range of topics relating to the intersection of Christianity and science. Multiple-view discussions are included, but not limited to, Adam and Eve, Age of the Universe, Creationism, Climate Change, Days of Creation, Problem of Evil, and Human Evolution. Each entry contains references and recommended reading on the topic, which is valuable for one to further investigate the material as these entries are not intended to be exhaustive. Though the book covers a great deal of material, some entries seem unbalanced. For instance, there is an entry for Open Theism, but not one for other major views such as Molinism or Arminianism, which are still hotbed issues with wide ranging implications. I am also surprised that the dictionary did not include an index.
Despite these minor shortcomings, I highly recommend this resource for anyone interested in the intersection of Christianity and science. This will be a valuable resource for many years to come!
