In an age of rising unbelief, top Catholic thinkers show how, more than ever, both science and reason affirm the words of the great Catholic poet Gerard Manley Hopkins: "The world is charged with the grandeur of God."
This book, edited by biologist Ann Gauger, clears up common misconceptions regarding intelligent design, showing why it is an argument not from ignorance but from knowledge and how the evidence for God's design of the natural world is growing. Part 1 explores scientific evidence from experts in cosmology, paleontology, genetics, chemistry, and biology. In part 2, you will learn about the purpose of creation, transcendent beauty, and the distinctiveness of the human person. The third part lays out the theology behind creation and how it reflects God's glory and concludes with Dr. Anthony Esolen's essay on the "symphonic order" of the universe, masterfully drawing from science, mathematics, literature, and philosophy.
You will also learn:
- What the Church really teaches about evolution
- How neo-Thomists wrongly apply Aquinas's thinking to evolution
- Characteristics that distinguish humans from the rest of creation
- Why materialistic scientists resist the Big Bang Theory
- How to understand the biblical account of Creation
- How natural law and transcendental beauty point to the existence of God
- Specific scriptures from the Old and New Testaments that testify to the wonder of God's creative hand
- Why Pope Benedict XVI cautioned that vague explanations about creation are insufficient
Moreover, you will learn how the understanding of ancient philosophers and Aquinas regarding the mind-brain connection, coupled with modern neuroscience support intelligent design and the creation of man as not only a material being but a spiritual being.
Each chapter includes extensive references, enabling further exploration. The entire book will strengthen you as never before in the belief that the world is the creation of an intelligent and intentional Designer—One whose greatest longing is for you to spend all eternity with Him.
