The following is a recent review of Beyond the Firmament by Dr. Christopher M. Sharp, an Astrophysicist currently teaching in France as an invited professor.  I had originally posted this on the endorsements page since the review is favorable.  But because of its length, I decided to put it here as a book review.

Dr. Sharp’s website is: http://www.csharp.com

“Gordon J. Glover has done a very good job in applying consistent biblical hermeneutics in this excellent book, and has ventured where many conservative and evangelical Christians have feared to tread. Many Christians insist that the only correct way to apply Genesis is literally, such as 24 hour creation days, which has to trump modern science. This not only does a great disservice to science education, but undermines the Christian message by associating Christianity with anti-knowledge, thus blunting the Christian witness in places such as university campuses. This book shows that many Christians are not applying hermeneutics consistently, and also rely on scientific discoveries since the Old Testament was written to re-interpret “difficult” passages, such as references to the windows of heaven, or the fixed earth.

As discussed in the book, the earth, the sky, and the heavens described in Genesis are completely consistent with the cosmos as commonly understood at that time in the Middle East, and if Genesis is really interpreted literally you get a Hebrew version of the same cosmos. What sets Genesis apart from the other creation stories is not the science, but a monotheistic personal God who created the universe from nothing, rather than the pagan polytheistic gods who only work with pre-existing material.  As Gordon explains, God communicated the story of creation by accommodating it to the limited scientific understanding of the day.

Many times I have heard conservative Christians complain that the Big Bang removes God from the picture, so it must be an atheistic theory.  As pointed out by Gordon, some in the Church criticized Newton at the time he formulated his theory of gravity because it removed God as an explanation for the motion of the planets. One of the most important concepts discussed by Gordon is a theology based on God acting through secondary causes, such as gravity, for example. It is significant that the foundation of western science is largely based on Judeo-Christian monotheism.

Science can only examine the physical universe in terms of material cause and effect, and is not equipped to address transcendent meaning or purpose, and as described in this book, the interpretation of the physical aspects of nature cannot be held hostage to particular philosophies of either Christians or atheists.

I would strongly recommend this book as a valuable addition to a church library and bookstore, and it should pique some Christians, agnostics, and atheists into thinking about what they believe, or what they do not believe.”

• Dr. Christopher M. Sharp, Research astrophysicist and educator

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