Eden's Garden: Rethinking Sin and Evil in an Era of Scientific PromiseThe time is ripe for a robust discussion of human nature. In Eden's Garden: Rethinking Sin and Evil in an Era of Scientific Promise, Richard Coleman examines the notion of sin in a contemporary world that values scientific and nonreligious modes of thought regarding human behavior. This work is not an anti-science polemic, but rather an argument to show how sin and evil can make sense to the nonreligious mind, and how it is valuable to make sense of such phenomena. The author reconceptualizes sin and evil as 'indelible pieces of our evolutionary history' preventing them from being ostracized as 'too religious, without substance, mired in the past.' Coleman redeems theology for what it can offer to the understanding of sin and evil while embracing and respecting what science can offer to further the common good. Examining themes in religion, philosophy, and theology, it is ideal for use in the numerous courses that move across these disciplines. |
From inside the book
Page 10
... ourselves , and the truth is not in us " ( I John 1 : 8 ) βand if the reason for our denial is not evident , our culture has " done a job on us . " Throughout this book science and theology are personified and general- 10 Introduction.
... ourselves , and the truth is not in us " ( I John 1 : 8 ) βand if the reason for our denial is not evident , our culture has " done a job on us . " Throughout this book science and theology are personified and general- 10 Introduction.
Page 19
... ourselves we really don't want to know . Chapter 4 provides a conceptual reworking of sin rooted in our need to know but invariably ending with overreaching . The next chapter undertakes an evolutionary account of sin . The last chapter ...
... ourselves we really don't want to know . Chapter 4 provides a conceptual reworking of sin rooted in our need to know but invariably ending with overreaching . The next chapter undertakes an evolutionary account of sin . The last chapter ...
Page 20
... ourselves as good people who , for the most part , live good lives . It offends our sense of justice to be told we are going to hell forever even though we tried to do our best . A literal reading of Genesis 3 does not really explain ...
... ourselves as good people who , for the most part , live good lives . It offends our sense of justice to be told we are going to hell forever even though we tried to do our best . A literal reading of Genesis 3 does not really explain ...
Page 25
... ourselves in whatever image we choose . We want to know every- thing , that is , we want to partake of the fruit of Good and Evil . We are the creature par excellence who inquires , explores , and creates . Whatever the limit β the edge ...
... ourselves in whatever image we choose . We want to know every- thing , that is , we want to partake of the fruit of Good and Evil . We are the creature par excellence who inquires , explores , and creates . Whatever the limit β the edge ...
Page 26
... ourselves . The Christian understanding of the way out , unlike the description of our predicament , is paradoxical . No one can understand what sin does to us by analyzing the situation from within the room . Only in light of God's ...
... ourselves . The Christian understanding of the way out , unlike the description of our predicament , is paradoxical . No one can understand what sin does to us by analyzing the situation from within the room . Only in light of God's ...
Contents
Knowledge Too Powerful to Be Ignored The Good and Noble Scientist | 45 |
Knowledge Too Good Not to Be Exploited The Compromised Scientist | 79 |
THE NEW OCCASION FOR AN ORIGINAL TEMPTATION | 127 |
Sin of the Common Variety Distinguishing Sin from Evil and Sin from Sins | 129 |
Sin Uniquely Christian A Fresh Interpretation of The Fall | 161 |
Sins Genealogy The Emergence of Sin | 189 |
Science as the New Occasion for Sin When Humans Overreach | 223 |
SCIENCE AND THEOLOGY IN COUNTERBALANCE | 247 |
What Can We Expect? So Much Depends on How We Answer | 249 |
Selected Bibliography | 283 |
293 | |
295 | |
299 | |
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Popular passages
Page 26 - Give me a dozen healthy infants, well-formed, and my own specified world to bring them up in and I'll guarantee to take any one at random and train him to become any type of specialist I might select β doctor, lawyer, artist, merchant-chief and, yes, even beggar-man and thief, regardless of his talents, penchants, tendencies, abilities, vocations, and race of his ancestors.β