After the Monkey Trial: Evangelical Scientists and a New Creationism

by Christopher M. Rios

Overview

A study of evangelical scientists during the middle decades of the twentieth century who resisted the antievolutionary creationist movement.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823256709
Publisher:	Fordham University Press
Publication date:	08/28/2014
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	272
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Christopher M. Rios is Assistant Dean in the Baylor University Graduate School and a parttime lecturer in Baylor's Department of Religion.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. Ebb and Flow: Evangelicals and Evolution, 1860s to 1940s
2. A Society for the Correlation of Science and the Bible: The American Scientific Affiliation, 1940s to 1965
3. Unexpected Resistance: The Research Scientists' Christian Fellowship, 1940s to 1965
4. An Increasingly Powerful Movement: Modern Creationism to the 1980s
5. Against the Tide: The American Scientific Affiliation, 1965 to 1985
6. A New Apologetic: The Research Scientists Christian Fellowship, 1965 to 1985
Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Editorial Reviews

"Christopher Rios' After the Monkey Trial prompts us to revise our understanding of evangelicals and evolution since the Scopes trial of 1925, when evangelicals earned a reputation as combative and anti-intellectual. His careful study adds a wonderful cast of characters to the history of religion and science that recovers the rich, if complicated history of evangelical scientists' participation in and negotiation with scholarship on evolution. This book offers not only a fresh perspective on the history of religion and science, but also a valuable historical case study for thinking about ongoing debates about evolution and the culture wars — one that will force us to ask why we all too often, and all too easily, pit science and religion against one another."-Anthony Petro, Boston University

"Rios's work fills an important niche in the literature on religion and science. Concentrating on the understudied period running from the Scopes trial into the 1980s, Rios highlights the transatlantic aspects of the controversy over evolution among evangelical scientists. This book bolsters our understanding of the puzzling phenomenon whereby popular evangelicalism presents a united front against evolution, while a large majority of evangelical scientists accept evolution and harmonize their professional work with their commitment to orthodox Christianity. The book is another nail in the coffin of the warfare model for understanding the relationship between religion and science."-Barry G. Hankins, Baylor University

"By telling the story of how evangelicals in England and America came to terms with science in the post-war period, Rios' book fills an important gap in the history of science and religion. It is well conceived, well written, wide-ranging, and carefully researched from primary sources—including unpublished correspondence and interviews. Anyone interested in this topic should read this book."-Edward B. Davis, Messiah College

From the Publisher

Christopher Rios’ After the Monkey Trial prompts us to revise our understanding of evangelicals and evolution since the Scopes trial of 1925, when evangelicals earned a reputation as combative and anti-intellectual. His careful study adds a wonderful cast of characters to the history of religion and science that recovers the rich, if complicated history of evangelical scientists' participation in and negotiation with scholarship on evolution. This book offers not only a fresh perspective on the history of religion and science, but also a valuable historical case study for thinking about ongoing debates about evolution and the culture wars — one that will force us to ask why we all too often, and all too easily, pit science and religion against one another.

Boston University - Anthony Petro

Rios's work fills an important niche in the literature on religion and science. Concentrating on the understudied period running from the Scopes trial into the 1980s, Rios highlights the transatlantic aspects of the controversy over evolution among evangelical scientists. This book bolsters our understanding of the puzzling phenomenon whereby popular evangelicalism presents a united front against evolution, while a large majority of evangelical scientists accept evolution and harmonize their professional work with their commitment to orthodox Christianity. The book is another nail in the coffin of the warfare model for understanding the relationship between religion and science.

Baylor University - Barry G. Hankins

By telling the story of how evangelicals in England and America came to terms with science in the post-war period, Rios’ book fills an important gap in the history of science and religion. It is well conceived, well written, wide-ranging, and carefully researched from primary sources—including unpublished correspondence and interviews. Anyone interested in this topic should read this book.

Messiah College - Edward B. Davis

“Few scholarly studies of evangelical responses to evolution and creation focus on the period from the 1940s through the 1980s; fewer still explore debates outside the United States. Chris Rios’s After the Monkey Trial: Evangelical Scientists and a New Creationism does both, making it a welcome addition to the growing body of literature on the history of science and religion.

University of Wisconsin - Ronald L. Numbers

“The tensions between evangelical Christianity and evolutionary theory have become notorious, but in this pioneering transatlantic study Christopher Rios shows that from the 1940s there were organizations in America as well as in Britain that wrestled perceptively and persistently with the issues involved. Their achievement was to establish that science and religion are entirely compatible.

University of Stirling - David Bebbington