A Case for A Creator: Book Review

My wife, knowing my interst in evolution, bought me a book that I was not previously familar with--"A Case for A Creator” by Lee Strobel.

I read it and here’s the book review. I don’t have a problem with Christians--I happen to be one myself. I do have a problem when they evangelize using poor theology and poor science. Mr. Strobel does that here.

In an introductory chapter, not related to his thesis, he criticizes the work of the Jesus Seminar. For those not familiar with the schlarly work of Christian thinkers, Christianity has it own version of “intelligent design"--groups of semi-scholars and conspiracy theorists willing to ignore evidence and critical of the dogmatic mainstream view. There is even a “Teach the controversy” claim and critiques of the mainstream religious worldview. I'm pretty sure that any well-established intellectual discipline has its own version of intelligent design-type of cranks and crackpots. The Jesus Seminar is one such group. Mr. Strobel’s criciticm of the Jesus Seminar demonstrates he is aware of the techniques of distortion, the one-sided misrepresentations paraded as "evidence" and spinning unproven hypthesis as “fact.” He knows crackpot theories when he sees them.

Mr. Strobel’s book represents itself as a fair-minded, even-handed attempt to convince nonbelievers and semi-believers that scientific evidence establishes God's existence. His entire book consists of interviews with Jonathan Wells, Steven Meyer, Michael Behe, Gulliermo Gonzalez and Jay Westley Richards. 'Nuff said. There are no other interviews with any scientists. He ignores all of the current scientific literature and also the vast amount of scientific and theological criticism of intelligent design. He also ignores the vast amount of theological discussion concluding that evolution itself is consistent with an informed and mature Christian worldview and has much to add to that worldview.

Let’s suppose a hypothetical person wrote a book about Christianity and Christian thought and only relies on fringe elements like:

Dan Brown, author of the Da Vinci Code

The Jesus Seminar

Osama Bin Laden

Karl Marx.

He specifically ignores Christian thinkers throughout the ages such as Augustine, Aquinas, C.S. Lewis or Chesterton.

He ignores this Book.

Would you think he really intended to write an intellectually honest, fair and even-handed discussion of Christianity?

I didn’t think so.

Yet, Mr. Stobel employs the same techniques as our hypothetical author above. No discussion of what evolution actually teaches. No discussion of Ernst Mayr or This is Biology; The Science of the Living World or
What Evolution Is.

No acknowledgement that his interviewees are part of a fringe movement, the "Jesus Seminar" of evolution, which has been debunked by the vast majority of real scientists, including Tower of Babel; The Evidence Against the New Creationism as just a single example.

And, of course no discussion of the book that started it all.

If you are interested in converting any of your friends to Christianity, don't give them this book.

I don't need to worry that anybody would actually mistake this book for any coherent scientific treatise.

Comments

[ACW]

Your link to The Origin of Species is damaged; I think you substituted a space for a hyphen.

[allan]

qoute:
Let’s suppose a hypothetical person wrote a book about Christianity and Christian thought and only relies on fringe elements like:
Dan Brown, author of the Da Vinci Code
end quote

Dan Brown's contention of the alleged "facts" is pure myth and non-sense. You may want to try a websearch of scholar's review against Dan's book. This review of the Case of the Creator is somewhat at best vauge and narrow-minded. It even mentioned why Lee have not included Christian thinkers of history; the works of some Evolutionists where in reality is outside of the scope of the book. You cannot just put down everything in just one book but in volumes. There are books that are indicated at the end of every chapter both from ID and Evolutionist for the reader to study further. This review is pure non-sense.

[Jeff Grace]

Excellent analogy! I wouldn't have thought of it, but I think you're on to something. The problems with people arguing for ID are so multi-level. Not only is it bad theology and anti-science... it ends up mixing the two disciplines in such a way as to reverse centuries of rational thought, which includes theology. This mindset doesn't stay where it began either... it spreads like a fungus and pretty soon we're in it everywhere up to our collective arse!

[Andrew]

I know I'm piling on six months too late, but better late than never.

Lee Strobel is engaged in a (very profitable) ministry of lying for Christ. In his _Case For Christ_, he cites "eminent archaeologist Dr. Jerry Vardaman's" insane microletters theory (that almost-invisible letters appear carved into Roman coins) to support a chronology that reconciles the obvious contradictions between Mark and Luke regarding Jesus's birth. Vardaman's "contribution" is to postulate that Quirinius was governor of Syria on two nonconsecutive occasions, and that the Romans commemmorated this fact by inscribing teeny-tiny letters on various coins.

Vardaman's theory is -- to put it mildly -- insane. Forget obvious problems like the fact that bronze coins tend to get worn down rather quickly or that the Romans never used this sort of microetching in any other endeavor; Vardaman's work supposedly transcribes THE LETTER 'J' from various coins -- despite the fact that the "J" wouldn't be invented for eight centuries!

Not only did Strobel take this nonsense at face value in _Case for Christ_ and in all subsequent reprintings -- Strobel is STILL PEDDLING IT TODAY when he thinks he can get away with it, even though he's been confronted with the truth on numerous occasions (including by me).

Yet on December 10, 2005, when appearing before an entirely sympathetic audience on FOX News, Stroble repeated the same ridiculous claims. Here's a link:

http://ntrminblog.blogspot.com/2005/12/some-items-related-to-christmas.html

Strobel simply does not stand for any of the values one would hope to have associated with Christianity, and it's a sad sign that he's one of the most prominent contemporary apologists.

[Joe McFaul]

Gee, how does he explain the "INRI" thingee?

[Stauffenberg]

So Strobel presents his views.

So what? Do you think the current books like The End of Faith by the atheist Sam Harris (who justifies pre emptive nuclear strikes, p. 129) give an "even handed" treatment of the other side?

Hell no.

A book can only contain so much, and the only treatment the "other side" gets in books by Harris, Dennet, Dawkins and their kind is denigration and ridicule.

Quit lying about other Christians.

You know the Bible says you shouldn't do that.

[Fellow Christian]

We are are all Americans so we are free to believe or not believe in anything. We are currently living in a society of selfish freedom.

Laws change. God's Laws never change.

All I need is Jesus and my Bible : )

[Rebecca, a Christian from England]

The book is called 'The case for a Creator' not 'The case for Christianity'. I think it does what it says on the title, gives a case for a creator. I thought it was good!

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Blogs are so interactive where we get lots of informative on any topics nice job keep it up !!

[Atheist]

We are are all Americans so we are free to believe or not believe in anything. We are currently living in a society of selfish freedom.

Laws change. God's Laws never change.

All I need is Jesus and my Bible : )
----

The typical close-minded Christian decided to post, so atypical.

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If you are interested in converting any of your friends to Christianity, don't give them this book.