Table of Contents
PRINCIPLES OF BIOMEDICAL ETHICS, by Tom L. Beauchamp and James F. Childress. Oxford University Press, New York, 1979. 314 + xvi pages. $13.95; $7.95.
THE LURE OF THE CULTS by Ronald Enroth, Christian Herald Books, Chappaqua, New York, 1979 Paperback. 139 pp. $4.50.
SENTENCED TO DIE: The People, the Crimes and the Controversy, by Stephen H. Gettinger, New York: Macmillan, 1979. 269 pages, $9.95.
ETHICAL ISSUES RELATING TO LIFE AND DEATH, John Ladd, editor, Oxford University Press, New York (1979), 214 pp., $12.95 cloth, $6.95 paperback.
A HOSPICE HANDBOOK: A NEW WAY TO CARE FOR THE DYING edited by Michael Hamilton and Helen Reid, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Mich., 1980. Pp. 196 + xii. $4.95.
CREATION: THE FACTS OF LIFE, by Gary E. Parker, C.L.P. Publisher, San Diego (1980), 163pp, paper $5.95.
THE EARTH, THE STARS, AND THE BIBLE by Paul M. Steidl, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1979, 250 pp., $5.95.
BRAINS, MACHINES AND PERSONS by Donald MacKay, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan (1980). Paperback. 114 pages. $3.95.
I BELIEVE IN THE CREATOR by James M. Houston, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan (1980). Paperback. 287 pages.
CHRISTIAN HEALING REDISCOVERED by Roy Lawrence, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515 (1980). Paperback. 138 pages. $3.95.
THE FORCE OF KNOWLEDGE by John Ziman (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1976), ix + 374 pp., paper, $8.95.
THE SOCIOLOGY OF SCIENCE: THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATIONS by Robert K. Merton, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979, 605 pp., $8.95.
TRIUMPHS OF THE IMAGINATION: Literature in Christian Perspective, by Leland Ryken, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, 1979. 262 pp. $5.95.
PARENTS IN PAIN, by John White. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1979, 245 pp., $4.95.
REDUCING ENERGY COSTS IN RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS by the Massachusetts Energy Office; Xenergy, Inc.; and The Center for Information Sharing, 77 North Washington St., Boston, Massachusetts 02114 (1978). 81/2xII paperback. 52 pages. Graded price scale from 2 for $4.90 to 100 for $98.00.
FEELINGS: OUR VITAL SIGNS by Willard Gaylin, Harper & Row, New York, 1979. 241 pp. $10.00; Ballantine, New York, 1979. Paperback $2.50.
SHOULD YOU EVER FEEL GUILTY? by Frank J. McNulty and Edward Wakin, Paulist Press, New York, 1978. 91 pp. $2.95.
KING OF CREATION by Henry M. Morris, CLP Publishers, San Diego (1980), 239 pp. $5.95, paper
THE END OF CHRISTENDOM by Malcom Muggeridge, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich, 62 pages, $2.50.
REASON ENOUGH by Clark H. Pinnock. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515, 1980. $3.50. 126 pages.
PERSON/PLANET: The Creative Disintegration of Industrial Society by Theodore Roszak, Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1979. 347 pp. $5.95.
GENESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF A SCIENTIFIC FACT by Ludwig Fleck (Edited by Thaddeus J. Trenn and Robert K. Merton, Translated by Fred Bradley and Thaddeus J. Trenn), The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979. xxv + 145 pp. + commentary and Annotation, $17.50.
THE EMERGING ORDER: GOD IN THE AGE OF SCARCITY by Jeremy Rifkin with Ted Howard, G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York 1979.

PRINCIPLES OF BIOMEDICAL ETHICS, by Tom L. Beauchamp and James F. Childress. Oxford University Press, New York, 1979. 314 + xvi pages. $13.95; $7.95.

It has been my privilege to use this book, both as a student and as a teacher. It is certainly one of several viable options as a text in a bio- and/or medical ethics course. One of the things I learned as a student was that the last names of the authors are pronounced "Beecham" and "Chilldress." Another was that they are of different philosophical persuasions, and the book is thus a compromise. This is a strong feature, as the area is a fertile ground for controversy, and books authored by one person may be idiosyncratic, or take one of a number of possible sides.

Principles of Biomedical Ethics is clearly printed. The binding of the paperback version is sufficiently substantial. There is no glossary, but an adequate index. Bibliography exists both in notes at the end of the chapters, and a general classified list of suggested readings at the end of the book. There are eight chapters, as follows: Morality and Ethical Theory; Utilitarianism and Deontological Theories; The Principle of Autonomy; The Principle of Nonmalefience; The Principle of Beneficence; The Principle of Justice; The Professional and Patient Relationship; Ideals, Virtues and Integrity. There are two Appendices that are strong selling points. The first is 29 cases, all apparently drawn from real life, preserving the facts as a springboard for discussion. Slightly less than a page is given to each case. The second Appendix is nine Codes of Ethics related to health related matters, ranging from the Hippocratic Oath to the 1978 DHEW "Regulations on the Protection of Human Subjects."

The authors avoid simplistic definitions, but attempt to present concepts not as collected beetles, fixed and pinned, but more as electrons with a bit of haziness, moving, and somewhat tenuous.

The emphasis is the person. Who is able to make decisions about treatment recommended by health personnel, etc., is the most important question, rather than determining what principles should determine our actions, or what seems to be the greatest good for the greatest number. Both of these aspects are also dealt with, as is apparent to an informed reader from the table of contents.

The book deserves consideration as an upper-division or graduate text, would be useful as an introduction to biomedical ethics for health professionals, and as a library holding or office reference.

Reviewed by Martin LaBar, Science, Central Wesleyan College, Central, South Carolina 29630.

THE LURE OF THE CULTS by Ronald Enroth, Christian Herald Books, Chappaqua, New York, 1979 Paperback. 139 pp. $4.50.

Professor Enroth introduces his discussion of the cults against the backdrop of the tragic events in Guyana, but his interest in aberrational religious groups goes back much further than Jonestown. Lure of the Cults is the third book in which he deals with cultic groups. I Approaching the subject as a sociologist and an evangelical Christian, Enroth examines the characteristics of the new cults; discloses the principles by which they operate; analyzes the "lure of the cultic groups"; and discusses "the significance of such phenomena for the individual, the family, the church, and the society."

Enroth uses a sociological definition of cult that stresses its socially deviant qualities and then adds a theological definition that stresses deviance from orthodox biblical truth. Combining these definitions does not serve to educate the reader about the social nature of cults. A cult is not simply any exotic group holding different beliefs and practices than evangelical Christians. It has its own structural characteristics that distinguish it from more stable, legitimate (even if theologically erroneous) sect-like groups. The larger issue of theological orthodoxy should be applied to mainline denominations as well as to sectarian and cultlike groups. Nevertheless, Enroth's concern is the cult-like groups, and his description of them is both accurate and helpful. Cults are placed in categories as follows: Eastern Mystical, Aberrational Christian, Psycho-spiritual or SelfImprovement, Eclectic-Syncretistic and Psychic-OccultAstral.

Why were the cults so numerous in America during the 1970's? Enroth answers,

Many young people during the decade of the sixties were leading lives of ease and emptiness. Disenchanted with the establishment, disoriented by the drug culture, and disillusioned with the failure of radical politics, the time was right for the emergence of the new religious movements. In the midst of uncertainty and a massive confusion of values, new-age religion provided a form of security and an unerring map for youthful searches (pp. 44-45). [The cults have become] escapist alternatives to the complexity of contemporary life, avoidance mechanisms for those unable to cope with their feelings of anxiety, insecurity, and isolation (p. 48).

Cult leaders are motivated to form groups around themselves because of their ability to exercise power over people; because of monetary gain and because sometimes they actually believe what they preach. In order to maintain the loyalty of group members, cult leaders employ control mechanisms such as sensory deprivation, social and geographic isolation, indoctrination, intimidation: "these are the ties that bind the spirit and cripple the soul" (p.74).

Moving from sociological to theological critique of the cults, Enroth points out that new religious movements often distort or even displace the Bible. They proclaim a false religion characterized by esotericism, the corruption and distortion of human sexuality and even evidences of supernatural power. But Christians "must be careful to discern true spiritual power from Satan's counterfeit" (p. 87).

What is a family to do when one of its members joins a cult? The Christian response should be "patience and prayer combined with a hopeful and sustained love" (p. 95). Parents should approach deprogramming with tremendous caution. Cultivating supportive, flexible and loving relationships that encourage the development of " positive self-image and a healthy sense of autonomy," will help family members resist the lure of the cults.

Christian families need support from the church. Enroth urges the church to recognize the real threat to the Body of Christ posed by the cults; to educate its members about new religious movements; and above all to remember that "its primary task is not to counter the cults but to proclaim the gospel" (p. 106).

Cults negatively affect the whole society. They financially exploit the public and threaten to undermine the American tradition of separation of church and state. They hinder the maturation process of their members, potentially creating an entirely new category of "institutionally dependent" people. "The need for solidly financed and soundly administered programs to rehabilitate ex-cult members represents a tremendous opportunity for the Christian community" (p. 112).

Lure of the Cults provides a well-reasoned and helpful approach to the problem of emerging aberrational religious groups. It is an excellent resource for the general reading audience interested in developing an intelligent Christian opinion of the cults.

Reviewed by John W. Hazzard, Department of Sociology, The King's College, Briarcliff Manor, New York 10510.

SENTENCED TO DIE: The People, the Crimes and the Controversy, by Stephen H. Gettinger, New York: Macmillan, 1979. 269 pages, $9.95.

This is an eminently readable, sensitive, and surprisingly balanced contribution to the current discussion about the appropriateness of death as a punishment for certain kinds of criminal behavior. The author, a journalist, presents eight profiles of persons who have been convicted of murder and "sentenced to die." These profiles are used to introduce and to illustrate the discussions of theories of punishment and the various moral and legal arguments used for and against capital punishment. These profiles do not always fit the argument that follows, but the author is properly cautious not to sentimentalize the issue nor to draw too general conclusions from so few examples. Gettinger does acknowledge that he was more disposed to favor capital punishment after doing the research for this book than he was before, but on balance he is still of the opinion that justice can better be served if capital punishment is prohibited.

The central issue is, in Gettinger's view, the matter of justice. While there is no profound philosophical treatment of the idea of justice, his insistence that punishment must be based on the idea of each person getting his just deserts is refreshing. Similarly, his recognition that justice is severely compromised by the pervasive racism and classism of our society and its criminal justice system is powerfully appropriate. The seventh chapter is essential reading for anyone who doubts this indictment of American criminal justice. It is the racial and social status of the victim that virtually determines whether a death sentence will be imposed.

Christian readers will find the overall perspective of the book to be humanistic. For example, Gettinger thinks all moral judgments to be necessarily relative and subjective, and thus inadequate warrants for punishment of any sort. Further, in a fleeting reference to the problem of evil the author argues that if man were evil he would be less than human. To so trivialize the problem of evil, not to speak of sin, is clear evidence of the author's optimistic humanism.

Reviewed by M. Howard Rienstra, Department of History, Calvin College, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

ETHICAL ISSUES RELATING TO LIFE AND DEATH, John Ladd, editor, Oxford University Press, New York (1979), 214 pp., $12.95 cloth, $6.95 paperback.

On the evening of January 21, 1980, 1 watched the television program "Death is Easy, Dying is Hard." The program was a real-life film record of the final ten years in the life of a woman with ovarian cancer. Her struggles were graphically illustrated as her condition worsened, the pain mounted and death was inevitable. One question began to be raised by this family, voiced not in learned tones, but in pain and fear: "Why can't I be left alone to die? Why can't this suffering be stopped?" The program was a moving, true illustration of the issues raised in the book Ethical Issues Relating to Life and Death.

The authors of the nine chapters are six philosophers and one physician. The philosophical specialties are all in the area of ethics, with many of the group being involved one way or another with questions of biomedical ethics. The lone physician, a pediatrician, wrote a landmark article entitled "Moral and Ethical Dilemmas in the Special Care Nursery" that was published in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine in 1973.

The discussions center around the general question of euthanasia, either active or passive. The arguments derive from specific philosophical constructs, usually stated at the beginning of each article. One observation is readily apparent to the Christian reader: there is no room for God in the considerations and no reliance on Scripture for guidelines. Several of the writers are quite outspoken in their belief that there is no God; this possibility (that God exists) is immediately rejected. Others at least recognize the existence of some Christian principles, although these principles are not developed- as part of the position on euthanasia.

Conclusions vary from author to author, but there appears to be almost unanimous acceptance of "passive euthanasia" allowing a patient to die of "natural causes" or by removal of life support systems when the illness is irreversible. Less certain is the position on "active euthanasia," the willful taking of a life to eliminate suffering and/or the intolerable burden of expense when nothing can be done to restore the health of the patient. There is guarded acceptance of "active euthanasia," generally stated as "if one (passive euthanasia) is acceptable on philosophical grounds, the other should be acceptable in some situations."

A major shortcoming of the book is that it has been written primarily by individuals who are not part of the health care team. The examples cited seem unrealistic and contrived. The information provided about specific cases is very incomplete. The only chapter with a ring of authority is the last one, coauthored by a physician. No consideration is given to other alternatives that alleviate suffering, decrease expense and make the ultimate reality of death a shared, less fearful experience. The recent rise of the hospice movement necessitates a re-evaluation of several of the statements and examples.

Reviewed by Donald F. Calbreath, Division of Clinical Chemistry, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Durham County General Hospital, Durham, North Carolina 27704.

A HOSPICE HANDBOOK: A NEW WAY TO CARE FOR THE DYING edited by Michael Hamilton and Helen Reid, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Mich., 1980. Pp. 196 + xii. $4.95.

Like most books of readings, some chapters in this book are considerably more readable and compelling than others. However, on the whole, this is a very successful introduction to the objectives and history of the hospice movement. A hospice is an institution devoted to the care of terminally ill people. The operations of the hospice are distinguished from normal medical care in the following ways:

A recent report to the U. S. Congress from the General Accounting Office (March, 1979) indicates that about 60 hospices were in operation in the U. S. and almost 75 more were in the planning stages.

The hospice idea originated in the service of religious orders in the Middle Ages but came to fruition in England about 10 years ago. The best known hospice in the world today is probably St. Christopher's Hospice in London founded by Dr. Cicely Saunders. The regimen of treatment there has provided a prototype for many hospices founded elsewhere.

Several of the brief thirteen chapters are quite moving, including Chapter 2 in which a mother decribes the death of her daughter. This is a touching, painful account and yet a satisfying one in the sense that one gains appreciation for the kind, responsive environment that aided in the death experience for both the mother and the child. The family follow-up program of many hospices following a death fulfills a need seldom adequately addressed by the church and other social institutions.

Perhaps the best illustration of the entire process of hospice care is provided in Chapter 9, which is a complete case history of a middle-aged woman who died of cancer in a Montreal hospice.

This is an excellent short introduction to the hospice movement, one all social service agencies and those in "people helping" professions should have available to them.

Those seeking information on the operation of hospices in their home state should contact the National Hospice Organization at Tower Suite 506, 301 Maple Avenue West, Vienna, Virginia 22180. Another worthwhile book that is available is The Hospice Movement: A Better Way of Caring for the Dying, Vintage Books, 1978, by Sandol Stoddard.

Reviewed by Craig E. Seaton, Ph.D,, Vice President and Associate Professor of Sociology and Pyschology, Trinity Western College, Langley, British Columbia, Canada, V3A 4R9.

CREATION: THE FACTS OF LIFE, by Gary E. Parker, C.L.P. Publisher, San Diego (1980), 163pp, paper $5.95.

Having taught at the same Christian college with Gary Parker almost 15 years ago 1, to some extent, shared in his struggles with the question of origins. I developed respect for Gary as a scientist and as an objective thinker. When he felt unable to examine the evidences for origins he returned to graduate school, studying disciplines that would specifically aid in his personal quest. It is from this perspective that I read his latest book Creation: The Facts of Life. While I find points on which we still disagree, I was pleased with the attitude and spirit in which this book was written. The essential point made by Dr. Parker is, let's look at the evidence. Did life result from "time, chance, and natural processes, or plan, purpose, and special creation?" Which view best fits the scientific evidence available to us today? Rather than simply accepting evolution as scientific fact as almost everyone does, why not examine the evidence and think about it?

The book is written in a rather informal style and directed to an audience not very familiar with the evidence for evolution or creation. While the author argues in several instances for a two-model approach to origins, this book presents arguments for scientific creation and against evolution. The material is divided into four chapters: (1) Evidence for Creation, (2) What About Darwin, (3) The Fossil Evidence and (4) Science, Faith and Facts. The book has 33 illustrations, some of which are quite effective. I find the book well written and the arguments clearly presented. One area in which I have a problem is when only two possibilities for origins are permitted: scientific creation or all other possibilities considered the same as atheistic evolution. Progressive creation, and atheistic evolution are treated as the same theory, the result of time, chance. The whole question of time and age of the universe is not specifically addressed. While this does not affect the arguments presented, it is an importent area that needs attention.

In conclusion I heartily support the essential point of the book, to examine the evidence for origins, and to think about it. In the authors words, we owe it to each other as fellow human beings to examine the evidence honestly and to constantly check our assumptions against all of the information available. We must finally live by faith-but let it be a faith that looks at the world with eyes wide open... and a heart that listens to the other fellow.

Reviewed by BJ. Piersma, Department of Chemistry, Houghton College, Houghton, New York 14744

THE EARTH, THE STARS, AND THE BIBLE by Paul M. Steidl, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Book House, 1979, 250 pp., $5.95.

The theme of this paperback is summed up in Psalm 19: 1, "The heavens are telling the glory of God and the firmament proclaims his handiwork". This book represents Steidl's efforts to "discern the hand of God in the heavens" and to give "a deeper understanding of and appreciation for the marvels of His creation in the heavens" (p. vii). More specifically, most of the book is devoted to a defence of fiat creation of the entire universe a few thousand years ago. It is a mixture of elementary astronomy, the author's exegesis of the Scfiptures, and an argument for a young universe. Steidl interprets the first chapter of Genesis as requiring a recent creation (less than 10,000 years ago) of the entire universe in six 24 hour days. Since he accepts no other interpretation, he then proceeds to look for evidences in astronomy that support this particular interpretation.

Much of the book is devoted to evidence against evolutionary theories of the origin of the universe and he points out weaknesses of various cosmological theories. Since none of the current cosmological theories can explain all the data, he concludes that God is the only explanation. "The only solution would be creation ex nihilo by the Lord God Himself" (p. 218). In my opinion, this is a non sequitur. No amount of evidence against a slowly evolving universe is evidence for creation. Steidl obviously rejects the possibility that God may have created the universe reather slowly.

The intended audience of the book is not entirely clear. If it is intended for students of astronomy, then the inclusion of much of the elementary astronomy seems rather unnecessary. However, if as it appears to me, the intended audience is those who know little or no astronomy, then the book has a serious weakness in failing to present a balanced analysis of arguments for and against a young universe. The author has deliberately presented only one side of the argument, "In short, we shall took at the evidence against the accepted theories. We do not apologize for not countering this with the evidence in favour of the accepted theories. All this is presented elsewhere . . ." (p. 98). Unfortunately, providing the reader with a rebuttal to the "accepted theories" is of very little use unless one knows the details of the argument against which the rebuttal is to be applied. Steidl's stated lack of objectivity also tended to decrease my confidence in his arguments and conclusions.

Steidl seems to have a very deprecating attitude towards scientists and astronomers and seems to feel that their main objective is to discredit the Bible and to find an excuse for rejecting God, e.g the steady state theory stands
as a warning to us of the lengths to which godless science will go to leave out the Creator" (p. 196).

Although this book may be of some use to students of astronomy who are particularly interested in arguments for a young universe, it is not one that I would recommend to most people.

Reviewed by Steven R. Seadding, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada NIG 2WL

BRAINS, MACHINES AND PERSONS by Donald MacKay, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan (1980). Paperback. 114 pages. $3.95.

This little book is based on the Henry Drummond Lectures given at the University of Stirling in 1975 under the title, "What is Man?" It covers material that overlaps with two other recent books by Dr. MacKay, Science, Chance and Providence and Human Science and Human Dignity. Since Dr. MacKay is Research Professor of Communication and Neuroscience at the University of Keele, concern with the brain and increasing information about brain mechanisms covers both his professional and Christian perspectives.

In addition to providing some good insight into modern understanding of the working of the brain and of the potentialities and limitations of computing machines in layman's language, MacKay's principal concern is to argue that the story of human activity told from the "outside" -the 0-story, is complementary to the story of human activity told from the "inside"-the I-story. Not only are these two modes of description not mutually exclusive, nor can one fully replace the other, but both descriptions are necessary for a total picture.

In developing the view that he calls, "Comprehensive Realism," MacKay rejects both interactionism - in which mind and brain are distinctively different entities in interaction, and materialism - in which only brain events are real and mind events are an illusion. He effectively uses the analogy of "viewing distance" to illustrate the meaning of different levels of description, and a figure showing the word EXIT, in which the letters are made up of newspaper clippings, at various degrees of magnification is dramatic.

As in other writings, here also MacKay is willing to admit the possibility of a completely deterministic description of brain processes, and yet believes that such a possibility would in no way compromise the basic biblical view of the human being. He consistently explores this possibility and is even willing to grant that artifically constructed machines might have consciousness. In a final chapter MacKay again goes over his arguments about determinism and inevitability, arguing that inevitability in an O-story does not mean inevitability in an I-story, i.e., something that I would be correct to believe if only I knew it.

This is a useful summary of MacKay's basic perspective. Most of it has been published elsewhere before, but the direct application to brain mechanisms and computer developments is instructive.

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.

I BELIEVE IN THE CREATOR by James M. Houston, Win. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan (1980). Paperback. 287 pages.

This book will bring little comfort to the person who believes that the title implies a discussion of the creation/evolution controversy on its historical battleground, and even less to the person who believes that to believe in the Creator means to believe in special fiat creationism. This is, in fact, not an ordinary book at all. It is as much poetry as prose, as much literary holism as analysis - more an expression of the author's complete trust in God, than an orderly systematic argument. These comments are not meant in any sense to be negative; we need a book like this on this subject!

James M. Houston, holder of a Fellowship at Hertford College, Oxford, and teaching geography in the University, left all this behind when he heard the Creator call him to come to Vancouver, British Columbia, and found Regent College, a graduate center for Christian studies affiliated nowadays with the University of British Columbia. At Regent Dr. Houston has taught a course for many years on the subject of creation and the Creator. This book is the fruit of that labor.

The book is divided into nine main sections: the world we live in, the God who creates, after the seventh day, understanding the Creator, this is my Father's world, culture and civilization before the Creator, living wisely before the Creator, the enjoyment of God's world, and living hopefully before the Creator. Within this framework Houston touches on nature, harmony, obstacles to belief, providence, Jesus Christ: the Living Word, a critique of culture, wisdom, child-like acceptance, awareness, worship, and the New Creation. Over a dozen acknowledgements of reprinted poetry are included, as Houston weaves the tapestry of his perspective.

The book is accurately described in a Preface by Michael Green,

There are plenty of books that argue the theistic hypothesis of cosmic origins against other views. There are plenty of academic treatises on the existence of a Supreme Being. Jim Houston has not written a book of that nature. His book is like a powerful, fastmoving river, composed of three streams. ... Here is a man who knows the God he writes about. I cannot imagine anyone coming away from this book unrewarded. (p. 9)

To answer the curiosity of those who wish to know how Houston stands on the classical creation/evolution controversy, the following quotes are illustrative:

A misconception of creation for many Christians is that it is a rival theory to those of the geological and biological sciences, especially on the issue of the origins of the earth. ... This is a tragic misunderstanding, for it tends to fragment the faith of the believer into three pieces: creation, which deals with the past; redemption, which is one's major preoccupation in the present; and the eschaton in the future, about which wild speculations may be encouraged. ... creation has much less to do with origins than with the language of dependence. (p. 98)

In such a wide-ranging free spirited book, it is not surprising that a few curious statements have crept in. The first of these occurs in the Preface and must be charged to Canon Green and not to Dr. Houston. Green lists a series of catastrophe-threatening world events, such as "the food scarcity, the shortage of non-renewable resources, the population explosion, the social and marital breakdown, the nuclear threat, the silicone (sic!) chip, the emptiness of belief and purpose." Perhaps it is simply because your reviewer works close to "Silicon Valley" that the inclusion of the silicon chip in this-list of threats seems out of place!

One of the briefest histories of the origin of socialism ever written appears early in the book:

What is frightening is that this man (Thomas Carlyle) influenced profoundly a young girl, Beatrice Webb, who lost her faith in Christianity, finding his mystical creed satisfying. Thus was socialism founded. (p. 24)

Perhaps Houston's liberal arts perspective makes itself known when he writes, "(man) further discovers that to intoxicate his mind with logic and mathematics, he must empty his head of truth," (p. 97), or again "That is why some timid souls may prefer to excel in mathematics, because they cannot cope with real people." (p. 183) 1 was a little shocked to read, "Humour is a rightful exercise in this world, for in heaven it will no longer be proper." (p. 221)

But all such fault-finding is no more than that, looking for small blemishes on a beautiful facade of marble. This is a thoughtful, profound, joyful book springing from the heart of a man, who knows from experience what it means to walk with God, his Creator.

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.

CHRISTIAN HEALING REDISCOVERED by Roy Lawrence, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515 (1980). Paperback. 138 pages. $3.95.

I must confess that this little book on Christian healing took me by surprise. I have long been skeptical about the dramatic display of healing that has characterized so much of the traditional framework; trusted friends have reported that "cures" were short-lived and interpretable by-andlargeas temporary emotional "highs." Not that I doubted God's ability to heal - just that I was skeptical as to whether it was indeed His will to heal as much and in the ways usually advanced. Roy Lawrence is vicar of St. Stephen's in Prenton, England, and a recognized authority on healing in the Anglican Church. The way Vicar Lawrence presents the case for Christian healing, I am surprisingly attracted and expectant.

In twenty brief chapters, Vicar Lawrence discusses his approach to healing and attempts to answer some of the objections raised in this area. When healing is placed in his context of total dependence upon the biblical record of Christ's healing ministry, of complete absence of publicity and hoopla, of profound humility, of the recognition that healing is not just something we need for our bodies but also for our whole beings, and of expectant waiting upon the Lord for His gracious work, the whole subject seems infused with new authenticity. Lack of physical healing can be accepted and not blamed upon too little faith. Physical healing is not seen as some kind of ultimate goal in itself, but the same kind of fruit that was a blessing to human beings when Jesus Himself was here on earth. It is recognized that there is at least one time in each person's fife when death must come - and then God's healing for death rather thanfrom death is also part of the same pattern. I recommend the book for reflection for all Chrisitans, especially those called to positions of leadership in the church.

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.

THE FORCE OF KNOWLEDGE by John Ziman (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1976), ix + 374 pp., paper, $8.95.

This very interesting book is subtitled, "The Scientific Dimension of Society," and seeks to establish the historical development of the link between scientific endeavor and the public weal. As such The Force of Knowledge, at least for this lay reader, was something of a disappointment. However, this is not to negate totally the value of the book, for the author provides a clear and highly thought-provoking study of the origins and development of the modern scientific community.

One of the major themes traced throughout the text is that of society's increasing involvement in and dependence upon scientific endeavor, especially as manifested in programs of government support for the sciences. Initially the scientific enterprise was limited to individual scientists working on personal theories or projects, often against the tide of public opinion. Men such as Galileo and others found little acceptance of their studies and findings during their day. However, as more and more individuals-such as Robert Boyle, Marcello Malpighi, John Ray, Christian Huygens, Isaac Newton, and more besides-began to investigate.the broad spectrum of knowledge in a scientific way, a new era of science began to blossom. This was the era that saw the development of the scientific academy.

The author sees the scientific academy-the learned fellowship of individual scientists-as a catalyst and bridge to the modern era. Scientific academies were organized in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries to be a source of communication, accreditation, and encouragement for scientific activity. In this they were highly successful. it is also at this point that governments first began to become involved in the scientific enterprise, some continental academies becoming in effect prototypes of modern government research institutions.

With the development of the academy and the beginnings ot state support for science there came a great increase in scientific research, publication, and productivity. Separate chapters are devoted to these first two areas while the large bulk of the book (beginning with chapter seven) seems to be reserved for the last. The author analyzes the rapid development of modern science along a broad spectrum, in one chapter discussing the development of the zipper, the jet engine, penicillin, and nylon. All these are presented merely as examples of the growth of science into the modern era.

The modern era of science is called by the author "Big Science," a title which seems altogether appropriate. This is the age of the massive private laboratories for research; the organization of large-scale, team-oriented research; heavy government involvement (especially as pertains to war materials); and unprecedented success. In these last sections of the book the author comes closest to fulfilling the claim of the subtitle. Here we are introduced to the impact of science upon agriculture, national defense, and the study of man in society. Yet these areas alone only skim the surface of the socio-cultural impact of science, for when we consider the universal influence of evolutionism upon every facet of human life and the writings of such popular authors as Vance Packard (The People Shapers) and Francis Schaeffer (Back to Freedom and Dignity) we realize that much more could have been said, not all of it positive.

Ziman's book is well-written and lavishly illustrated. it was a delight and a challenge to read. Two additional objections, however, must be raised.

First of all, as an introduction to the development of science the book fails to deal much with the theological or philosophical temperament of any of the ages of science. What stimulus did orthodox Christianity provide to early science? What impact did the Enlightenment make? What has been the effect of Darwinism upon science, especially upon its darker side? These and many other similar questions are not directly considered. (One may find some interesting discussions of this first question in W. Stanford Reid's Christianity and Scholarship and Eugene M. Klaaren's Religious Origins of Modern Science.)

Second, the author seems to take a developmental view of science-which is the traditional way of viewing the history of science-that is, one era building on the knowledge and experience gained by the previous era. He seems altogether unconcerned with the hypothesis set forth by Thomas Kuhn that the growth of science has been through a series of revolutions in which the paradigm or scientific world-view of one era is replaced by an altogether new way of thinking about science. One might have expected at least a passing response to this important study.

Nevertheless, this is a valuable book. It is especially helpful for those readers interested in bridging the span of years from the medieval times to the present along a variety of lines.

Reviewed by T. M. Moore, President, The National Institute of Biblical Studies, Pompano Beach, Florida 33064

THE SOCIOLOGY OF SCIENCE: THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATIONS by Robert K. Merton, Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979, 605 pp., $8.95.

This book is a collection of papers by Robert K. Merton previously published between 1939 and 1972. It is, in fact, not new but a paperback edition of the book originally published in 1973. Since Merton is clearly one of the leading thinkers in the sociological study of science this collection provides an excellent basis for either an introduction to this branch of sociology or as a review of the main streams of thought in the field. The papers have been selected and edited by Norman W. Storer. They are arranged topically rather than chronologically with introductory notes by Storer. The arrangement of papers and the introductory notes help to bond the individual papers together into a more coherent whole than one usually finds in a collection of reprinted essays. The papers vary somewhat in quality but typically give a clear and incisive analysis of various aspects of the sociology of science. Topics include: the sociology of scientific knowledge, the normative structure of science, the reward systems and evaluative systems in science.

Merton is clearly a master in his field. The essays range over the entire scope of the history and sociology of science, and often include detailed comment and analysis of the works of others. Merton is a proponent of the view that the rise of modern science can be closely linked to 17th century Puritanism in England and to the "Protestant ethic" more generally. (Chapter I I - The Puritan Spur to Science.) Puritanism provided a rational for science: since God is revealed in his handiwork, nature is thus one means of appreciating the wisdom and glory of God in creation. Further, since social welfare, the good of many, is a dominant tenet in the Puritan ethos, science was to be fostered and nurtured as it leads to an improvement in man's lot on earth by facilitating technological developments.

Overall, this is a very useful volume, highly recommended to those with an interest in the sociology of science.

Reviewed by Steven R. Scadding, Department of Zoology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada NIG 2WL

TRIUMPHS OF THE IMAGINATION: Literature in Christian Perspective, by Leland Ryken, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, 1979. 262 pp. $5.95.

"For the glory of God and for fun." These are the reasons Ryken gives for reading literature. Why does he give these reasons? Because Christians throughout history have denigrated the reading of literature. Witness Jerome's dream where Christ reproaches him because "You are not a Christian, you are a Ciceronian," and Tertullian's cry of "What has Athens to do with Jerusalem?"

Ryken retorts that the Bible is not anti-literary. Indeed, the Bible is a work of literature and to understand it properly one must understand literature. He then goes on to examine some fascinating areas of current literary thought. Along the way he stops to ask several cogent questions: What exactly is Christian literature? What should one avoid reading?

To his lasting credit Ryken suggests guidelines rather than hard and fast rules to answer these questions. There are shades of gray here, and Ryken sees them. He realizes, for instance, that the same book may spiritually harm one person and yet benefit another. We are tempted differently.

The major strength of the book lies in its reliance upon the Bible. It is the one sourcebook held in common by all Christians whatever their view of its authority. Ryken finds the origin of literature, for example, in the doctrines of the early chapters of Genesis. God creates; and since we are made in His image we also create. To make a literary world is to exercise the image of God within us. It is a spiritual duty. Again, when answering the question of whether one may read non-Christian literature, Ryken turns to the Bible. There he finds Paul quoting several pagan poets in Acts 17. This is a consistent trait of the book and one that the reviewer finds satisfying.

The author also makes a survey of the usefulness of literature and includes an annotated bibliography (Ch. 9) that is most helpful to the beginning student in religion and literature.

There is much more that cannot be covered in a short review. The book is well written and provides a competent introduction to Christian literary thought. For those who would like to get behind Narnia to the subject matter of literature I would recommend this book.

Reviewed by Louis K. Combs III, Graduate Student, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55414.

PARENTS IN PAIN, by John White. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1979, 245 pp., $4.95.

This book has an uncommon amount of common sense. While the author is a Christian, he is also a parent who has learned something about his role in the school of experience. In addition to common sense, White also looks at the findings of science although he relies mostly on the Bible.

White believes that many parents get hurt because they find false hope in the Bible by reading it through magic spectacles. Further, Christians by the ferocity of their faith can unconsciously try to use God to solve their problems. Most tragic of all are those Christians who seek to use praise of God as a crude instrument to bring God around to meet their need.

In this book parents in pain are addressed. There is no panacea of healing offered. Rather there is a sharing of pain with little advice on child rearing. White writes as a Christian psychiatrist and father. His discussion deals with the complications of child rearing, the place of professional aid and the need for Christian integrity.

According to White, the godliest and wisest parents can never guarantee these virtues in their children. The best parents sometime produce monsters while the breakers of every rule may produce a family of responsible, adjusted little angels.

On the other hand many well intentioned parents know all the rules but fail to keep them. The problem is less one of ignorance than incompetence. White suggests that the crucial question may not be how to rear successful children but how to become a good parent.

Hopefully, this brief review will encourage the reader to get a copy of this book and read it. Parents will surely identify with White's description of the pain they feel: rage, guilt, shame and self-pity. But more importantly, White's description of what it means to be a center of peace will provide some encouragement and assistance in the quest not only to be a good parent but a good Christian. As White describes it: "To be a center of peace in your family is to accept the fact that trouble is bound to come but that the trouble does not necessarily mean you have failed as a parent ... To be a center of peace means to have the capacity to take disturbing traits and behavior in other family members without being inwardly upset."

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.

REDUCING ENERGY COSTS IN RELIGIOUS BUILDINGS by the Massachusetts Energy Office; Xenergy, Inc.; and The Center for Information Sharing, 77 North Washington St., Boston, Massachusetts 02114 (1978). 81/2xII paperback. 52 pages. Graded price scale from 2 for $4.90 to 100 for $98.00.

This is a manual developed as part of the program of the Massachusetts Energy Office to help carry out that state's comprehensive energy plan, which sought a 5% reduction in energy consumption by 1980. The Center for Information Sharing, Boston, edited, designed, illustrated and produced the manual. It is intended to be a practical manual providing guidelines that should produce a 20% reduction in energy consumption in the typical church establishment.

The book gives helpful guidelines and suggestions for how to handle the major areas of heating, hot water, air conditioning, the building, and lighting, with special sections on artifacts and pipe organs, maintenance, and fuels and fuel rates. Since energy conservation is not only good church economy but also an expression of Christian stewardship, every Board of Trustees would do well to take a look at this manual.

Reviewed by Richard H. Bube, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305.

FEELINGS: OUR VITAL SIGNS by Willard Gaylin, Harper & Row, New York, 1979. 241 pp. $10.00; Ballantine, New York, 1979. Paperback $2.50.

SHOULD YOU EVER FEEL GUILTY? by Frank J. McNulty and Edward Wakin, Paulist Press, New York, 1978. 91 pp. $2.95.

Guilt feelings have been assaulted from a variety of sources: from popular psychological prescriptions which tell us that guilt is a useless and pathological emotion to serious philosophical treatises which argue that guilt is irrational in all occurrences. These two books remarkably swim against this tide.

Among paperback psychologists, the reason why guilt feelings have been so frequently criticized is that they are seen as the artifacts of arbitrary taboos, prescriptions and rules laid down by authority figures and authorities- such as the Church. McNulty and Wakin are Catholics caught between two extremes. On one hand, they concede to the critics of guilt that the Catholic Church has in the past been excessively legalistic and has engendered an unhealthy and excessive liability to "inappropriate" guilt. But on the other hand they are sensitive to the effects of the new moral theology which was intended as a corrective to this liability to "inappropriate" guilt. They share the concern of Catholic parents who look at the younger generation of Catholics and wonder if it has any sense of sin at all. As a consequence McNulty and Wakin set out to establish the proper place of guilt in the Christian's moral life. They correctly note the relation guilt has to conscience and why it is therefore an important emotion to vindicate. The issue is both practical and deeply philosophical, but to my mind their solution is unsatisfying on both counts.

Practical advice is the primary aim of their book, but they answer the question in such a way and such a level as to largely defeat this aim. This is a problem which attends and threatens any via media that defines the position by rejecting extremes. To say, "too much guilt is bad and so is too little" we arrive at a truth, but one which grants little specific direction. What we desire to know is when and by what criterion conscience is an accurate indicator of moral failing. McNulty and Wakin attempt to provide such a criterion by distinguishing superego guilt and moral guilt. This distinction, however, evades the central philosophical question because this distinction locates the source of guilt but says nothing about its validity. For example, suppose I feel guilty about using a contraceptive and upon reflection I discover that I do not think their use is wrong but I fear the disapproval of the Church. This means that my guilt, according to this distinction, is not true moral guilt but superego guilt. But what does this say about the morality of the use of contraceptives and whether I should feel quilty about their use? Nothing, unless one is willing to claim that right and wrong is relative to self-directed consciences. This, of course, would make morality subjective and as far as I can tell this is not the authors' intent.

Gaylin, president of the Hasting Center's Institute for Society, Ethics and the Life Sciences, presents a phenomenological study of the subjective experience of a number of emotions and moods including feeling: anxious, guilty, ashamed, proud, upset, tired, bored, envious, used, touched, moved, and good. He argues that although these feelings have been misunderstood and neglected by both psychiatry and psychology, they all have significant functions. Largely, he vindicates them by pointing out their survival value. For example, he says:

Moral and social emotions, then, are what humanizes and binds us to others on whom we depend for our social survival.

What is interesting about this line of defense is that it will not work for all emotions. What, for instance, is the survival value of being aesthetically moved by a landscape or piece of music? A second problem with this defense is that it leaves to one side the deeper philosophical question of the validity of these emotions. Do these feelings tell us merely about ourselves or does the very capacity to have them tell us something about reality as well? Are our emotions culturally relative or is there something transcultural and innate about them? But even if there is something constitutional about our liabilities to these emotions, may we not suggest that perhaps evolution has made a mistake? Gaylin's position invites these questions but does not answer them. His claim that "...it is the purpose of feelings not just to facilitate survival but to celebrate the sense of purpose and goodness of that survival" (p. 210) seems to beg these very questions. It can be admitted that some emotions make no sense unless life indeed is meaningful and good, but the existence of these emotions does not prove straight away that life is indeed meaningful and good. This is so for the simple reason that although they may aid survival, survival, nevertheless, may be futile and serves no larger purpose.

Although neither book satisfactorily answers the philosophical questions raised by the existence of certain emotions, both are provocative and fascinating; they are replete with literary illustrations of tremendous evocative power. However, Gaylin's book is superior because of it s breadth of scope and its attempt to found his remarks on a wider theory of emotions. He does tend to confuse moods with emotions, incorrectly distinguishes guilt and shame, mistakes the philosopher R. S. Peters for a psychologist, and preserves the unfortunate dichotomy between reason and emotion. These on the whole, however, are minor imperfections which should not obscure the fact that this is an important contribution to a subject which has vital practical importance and goes to the heart of one of the most basic philosophical quandries-What is Man?

Reviewed by Terry Pence, Assistant Professor of Philosophy, Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Kentucky 41076.

KING OF CREATION by Henry M. Morris, CLP Publishers, San Diego (1980), 239 pp. $5.95, paper

After forty years on the battle-line, Dr. Morris has issued in King of Creation a call to the faithful to enter the conflict. In his words, "This book has been addressed primarily to Christian people, seeking to enlist them as active participants in the great battle for creation." Having decided myself after years of study that the theory of evolution was not scientifically established fact but very much a faith proposition, I was determined to read King of Creation with an open mind. I soon found myself in the position of wanting to argue with Morris as much as wanting to agree with him. Statements such as the following illustrate my point:

Morris forcefully maintains that there are only two ways to view origins: special creationism which is the biblical way, and all other views which are considered identical with atheistic evolutionism and which, of course, is Satan's way. All who do not accept special creation have been blinded by Satan. The book has five chapters with the first two essentially presenting the biblical arguments for special creation and against evolution. Chapter three discusses the world's reaction to creationism. Here, the recent books by Wonderly, Thurman, Eckelman and Newman, and Young are identified as "Christian attacks on true creationism." In chapter four Morris finally gets down to the business of showing that evolution contradicts true science and creation explains true science. In his words:

the most up-to-date data of the key sciences of thermodynamics, statistics, biochemistry, geology, paleontology, biology and linguistics have been applied to the study of origins. These facts of science, as distinct from the speculations of scientists, are in full agreement with the Genesis record.

The reviewer will refrain from comments here, which could be extensive, and recommends that the reader investigate the material and form his own conclusions. Morris concludes with chapter five, a call to preach the true gospel of creationism.

I found King of Creation worth reading, even though it put me in the mood to disagree. I find myself no more convinced to accept the young earth model with six 24-hour days of creation than I was before reading the book. I did find several concepts new to me that are worth thinking about.

In summary, King of Creation will be well received by those Christians who believe special creationism, and will not be so well received by all those Christians who are not conviced that belief in the Bible demands acceptance of special creationism. I was disappointed by the tone of the author condeming all who are not in his camp; however, this might be expected from one who has spent his life in the battle against evolution. I was also disappointed that 11 Peter 3:8 was not among the many biblical references.

Reviewed by B.J. Piersma, Department of Chemistry, Houghton College, Houghton, New York 14744.

THE END OF CHRISTENDOM by Malcom Muggeridge, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids, Mich, 62 pages, $2.50.

This little book presents two lectures given by Muggeridge in 1978 as the inaugural addresses of the Pascal Lectures on Christianity and the University'at the University of Waterloo. The lectures, The End of Christendom and But Not of Christ are followed by discussion. As we expect of Muggeridge, we find profound truths mixed with British wit and strong opinions. To stimulate your interest permit me to quote several examples:

By some infallible process media people always manage to miss the most important thing.

The strange and mysterious and highly amusing thing is that probably you would have very great difficulty in finding a single Marxist in the U.S.S.R. You would only find Marxists among left-wing Jesuits in the faculties of universities in the West, which is one of God's little jokes.

I myself am convinced that the theory of evolution, especially the extent to which it's been applied, will be one of the great jokes in the history books in the future. Posterity will marvel that so very flimsy and dubious an hypothesis could be accepted with the incredible credulity that it has..."

You know, there are many pleasures in being old and gaga. One of the greatest of them is to realize that history is largely nonsensical...

So you have the pleasure of knowing that you need not bother in any way about history.

These examples, however, do not represent the main thrust of the book. The theme of the first lecture is that Christendom is something quite different from the Christianity of Christ, that "it bears the same relation to the everlasting truth of the Christian revelation as, say, laws do to justice, or morality to goodness, or carnality to love 11 "You might even say that Christ himself abolished Christendom before it began by stating that his kingdom was not of this world-one of the most far reaching and important of all his statements." Muggeridge cites several factors leading to the fall of Christendom: "a sort of death wish. . . in what we call liberalism" ("Christendom has dreamed up its own dissolution in the minds of its own intellectual elite."), "our excessive, obsessive televiewing," the abandonment of Christian morals" ("A dying civilization on a swiftly moving, ebbing tide, clutches at any novelty in art and literature, ready to accept and then almost at once reject whatever is now no matter how perverse or abnormal").

In the second lecture Muggeridge completes his thesis that though Christendom is coming to an end, it is not he end of Christ. He finds, "the best example of the incarnate presence of Christ to withstand worldly power in Solzhenitsyn". For Muggeridge the most extraordinary single fact of the twentieth century is "the amazing renewal of the Christian faith in its purest possible form in, of all places, the countries that have been most drastically subjected to the oppression and brain washing and general influence of the first overtly atheistic and materialistic regime to exist on earth. "

We become forgetful that Jesus is the prophet of the losers' not the victors' camp ... Let us then as Christians rejoice that we see around us on every hand the decay of institutions and instruments of power... For it is in precisely when every earthly hope has been explored and found wanting... when in the shivering cold the last faggot has been thrown on the fire and in the gathering darkness every glimmer of light has finally flickered out, it's then that Christ's hand reaches out sure and firm. ... then his light shines brightest, abolishing the darkness forever.
Reviewed by B.J. Piersma, Department of Chemistry, Houghton College, Houghton, New York 14744.

REASON ENOUGH by Clark H. Pinnock. InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, Illinois 60515, 1980. $3.50. 126 pages.

Reason Enough will be shared with my twenty year old, college-going son and with my thirty-one year old, busy boss at social work. Short and sound for educated people in North America, I will not show it to dropouts nor to anyone in the "third world."

After misnaming the ethical sixties, Pinnock underlines five circles of evidence for the trustworthiness of the Good News about Jesus Christ. His approach, showing practical evidence first, the evidence of experience second, the cosmic evidence third, historical evidence fourth, and the evidence from community caring fifth, is worthy, even though he is not rigorous with words like "reason," "truth," and "fact."

Pinnock's reworking of words substitutes "meaning" for "self-affirmation" or "importance." Thus the pragmatic circle concerns why we dare to think of ourselves as significant. Clearly this is better backed by the Christian than by the humanist perspective. (The author's picking apart of the atheistic approach is better summarized in Blues for Mr. Charley, by James Baldwin, where the youth says, "I don't believe in God." The Grandmother responds, "Your breath do!" To which the youth asks, "What you mean, old woman?" She finishes: "Just you try to stop breathing!")

Religious experience, the second circle, gives real insight into the history and modern relevance of this inner light. Disarmingly honest, Pinnock writes,

... I find myself in an embarrassing position ... I have presented the Christian message as the fulfillment of two basic human drives: the drive toward meaning and the drive toward transcendence. I have seen the gospel as making us happy and fulfilling our needs, as giving us pleasure and satisfaction ... Is Holiness really fun? Yes, I think it is.

The cosmic circle, of course, has to do with the basic question, "Why is there something rather than nothing?" In some ways, Madeleine L'Engle has wrestled more imaginatively with this question in her A Wrinkle in Time and The Wind in the Door. But for those who read plain prose more than they relish fiction, quotes from Robert Jastrow of Goddard Institute for Space Studies suffice.

The heart of the book is the historical circle. here the argument is sure, with good phrases gracing it: "By placing oneself in relation to Christ by faith, a person is caught up in the saving process." (p. 75) "He did not say, 'Thus says the Lord' as the Old Testament prophets did, but 'verily, I say unto you.' He did not say 'the word of our God endures forever' as Isaiah did ... but 'my words will never pass away.' " (p. 81) Pinnock's comments on God promoting women's liberation by allowing them to be the first to witness the resurrection are stimulating. (p. 86)

It is a delight to see an Intervarsity book with a section on the social impact of the Gospel, recognizing the prophetic role of Marxism. While the author's criticism of the church is too light, his picture of the church as the community that practices love is fetching. If our churches lived in the way he outlines-based on Jesus and Paul-such books as Reason Enough would not be necessary. Since this one has appeared, I can honestly say that there is reason enough for reading it.

Reviewed by Harvey Bates, 600 South 3rd St., # 12, Grand Forks, ND 58201. Director, Yourth Community Conservation and Improvement Project. Pulpit Supply, Cooperstown and Sharon (ND) Presbyterian Churches.

PERSON/PLANET: The Creative Disintegration of Industrial Society by Theodore Roszak, Garden City, NY: Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1979. 347 pp. $5.95.

It is now fashionable among academic and "popular" writers alike to attack the impersonality, wastefulness, and sheer bigness of modern industrial life. Most of them call for some new ethic and social order that harmonizes better with the "true nature" of humanity and with the resources and rhythms of the physical environment. PersonlPlanet joins these works, but with perhaps closer attention to some basic human values that underlie the counter-culture advocated.

Roszak develops a personalist view of man-an autonomous, unique being who has the right to develop and live in accordance with his or her inner personality and destiny. This person is not to be defined by any social institution or imposed mystical identity. Rather he or she must be seen as basically innocent, freed of the sense of guilt and sin that Christian culture has imposed on us for not living up to our assigned roles.

Coupled with this, Roszak argues for the "rights of the planet" to respect for its native dignity and life-sustaining integrity. His is an ecology that personalizes the earth to some degree and integrates its values with those of the free person.

These values of Man and Earth are gravely threatened today by bigness-political and economic systems whose lust for growth violates the humanity of persons and the integrity of the planet. This is particularly evident in city life, which not only pollutes the environment and overloads us with controlling institutions, but also expands our material appetites beyond what can be reasonably supported.

The answer to this is "creative disintegration," a kind of anarchism that strikes down the oppressive structures. Roszak calls on us to withdraw our allegiance from them and turn to those which have a truly personal scale. For example, we should seek a family life that rears children by good example rather than by rules that force artificial personalities on them. Our vocations should enable us to feel responsible for our work, both for what we produce and how well we do it. Our cities should be "deurbanized" by reducing them to a scale that is large enought to meet our material and cultural needs but not so large as to be an imperialistic parasite on the planet.

What message is there here for Christians? Not a few evangelicals have taken up the cause of ecological balance, simple life styles, and personality-affirming communities. Roszak pictures a future that could be quite in harmony with their values. Yet we must be more radical than Roszak in one dimension, since his theology is clearly inadequate for the moral and social order he portrays. We have a theology of sin and regeneration, of God as well as man at work in the world. Evangelicals do well to consider such humanistic works as a challenge to build their own sense of hope and vision with which to respond to a confused world.

Reviewed by William C. Johnson, Professor ofPolitical Science, Bethel College, St. Paul, Minnesota 55112.

GENESIS AND DEVELOPMENT OF A SCIENTIFIC FACT by Ludwig Fleck (Edited by Thaddeus J. Trenn and Robert K. Merton, Translated by Fred Bradley and Thaddeus J. Trenn), The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1979. xxv + 145 pp. + commentary and Annotation, $17.50.

Ludwig Fleck, a physician and research microbiologist, uses the Wassermann reaction and its role as a test for syphilis in a case study to illustrate the way in which most of our scientific facts develop from tentative, ancestral preideas. This book, first published in German in 1935, received favorable reviews in medical journals. However, its thesis on the importance of sociological principles was several decades ahead of time for wide acceptance. This first translation into English includes a foreword by Thomas S. Kuhn, a 5-page biographical sketch of Fleck, and 12 pages of descriptive analysis by the editors.

In replacing the mystical-ethical concept of syphilis (bad blood) with one based on natural science and pathogenesis, Fleck points out the limited significance of the individual scientist. The individual's orginal contribution becomes transformed a little each time it is shared with and acted upon by other individuals in the "thought collective" (Denkkollektiv), a community of persons mutually exchanging ideas and linked by a common thought style. Discovery in science is a complex, socially conditioned result of collective, not individual effort. The resultant concept belongs not to the originator, who may hardly recognize it anymore, but to the collective. Even specialized knowledge "does not simply increase but also basically changes."

Fleck challenges the common concept of objective, "bare" facts. He states that facts are collectively created, not objectively given. Any fact is possible if it fits the currently accepted thought style, which he defines as the readiness for directed perception with corresponding mental and objective assimilation of the perception. Fixed or "proven" facts exist only in vademecum (handbook) and popular science. This involves selection from a collection of fragmentary, somewhat personal, and often contradictory journal articles and subsequent critical synopsis in an organized system. Although many investigators later rationalize and idealize their meandering research process into a straight, goal-directed path, many important discoveries, including the Wassermann reaction, initially involve false assumptions and irreproducible experiments. The specific cautions and personal, tentative nature of journal science are lost in the conversion to the more certain, impersonal facts of vademecum science. The resulting concepts become dominant and binding even on the expert. It is this constraint of thought that determines what is ignored, unthinkable, or needing more investigation. This also fosters a tendency to see only additional substantiating evidence and to miss, ignore, or conceal contradictions. Even some of the early anatomical illustrations conformed to the current stereotyped opinion (concepts) rather than to nature.

The ability to perceive scientifically, i.e., observing given facts purely objectively, is acquired only slowly through conscious effort to overcome the social bondage of a sometimes rigid thought style. The individual, however, is hardly conscious of the "compulsive force" of the collective upon his thinking. Even the expert has problems because he is "a specially molded individual who can no longer escape the bonds of tradition and of the collective; otherwise he would not be an expert."

Fleck believes that truth in science is neither objective and absolute nor relative and subjective but is determined by the particular style of thinking currently accepted by the though collectives. Thus truth can vary with time and culture. Changes in thought style or participation in several different thought collectives allows for the development of new truths or facts. The breadth of a liberal arts education is important in enhancing creativity because of the effect of different thought collectives on individual experiences.

This book will be welcomed by anyone interested in the history and philosophy of science. It contributes valuable insights and perspective so badly needed in analyzing nature and scientific accounts of it.

Reviewed by L. Duane Thurman, Department of Natural Science, Oral Roberts University, Tulsa, Oklahoma.

THE EMERGING ORDER: GOD IN THE AGE OF SCARCITY by Jeremy Rifkin with Ted Howard, G. P. Putnam's Sons, New York 1979.

It is a fascinating experience for a Christian to read The Emerging Order, realizing that at least one of the authors (Rifkin) is Jewish. For someone who is evidently not wellinformed (as will be seen later) about some of the Reformational roots of what is known to historians as "Western civilization", the authors have produced a thoughtprovoker! And for all of us who are witnessing the fragmentation of our civilization, to read that we need a "new Covenant vision" leading to a "newly defined creation doctrine" and that "the evangelicals have the structural base that is necessary to carry out (the) conceptualization and implementation" of this vision (p. 232), is heady stuff! So when Christians read Rifkin and Howard, they definitely have our attention, especially when they make such sweeping and assured projections for the future, and seem to back them up with weighty arguments. Much of what they propose is very attractive to the Christian. One could almost say that reading their book is an exercise in "Christian futurology".

Sadly, however, the book is seriously flawed. Disappointingly so, since it promises so much and then falls so short, so that reading it becomes an exercise in "Christian frustration" instead. So many of their perceptions concerning the Reformation roots of our culture are correct, but because their interpretation is faulty, it renders suspect their subsequent analysis. And, several of their perceptions are not correct, outstandingly their unfortunate concept of the Reformation teaching of John Calvin regarding assurance of salvation, which has been modified to the point of nonrecognition. And this is no small mistake. This misperception is repeated again and again throughout the book, and obviously plays a large part in the authors' conclusion that we have come to the end of the "age of expansion."

Now, what did Calvin actually teach concerning election and the source of the believer's assurance of his salvation? "Christ, then, is the mirror in which we ought, and in which, without deception, we may contemplate our election... " And how do we know that we belong to the Lord? "...if we are in communion with Christ, we have proof sufficiently clear and strong that we are written in the Book of Life." (Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 3, Ch. 24, par. 5).

But, how do Rifkin and Howard perceive this?

Calvin asserted that unceasing physical work (emphasis mine) was the individual's only 'sign' or possible proof of election. This notion led directly to the idea of unlimited material accumulation, expansionary growth, efficiency, technique, and exploitation of physical and human resources. The Reformation person's ... only way of assuring himself that he had been chosen for passage to the other world was to keep on producing in this one. The more he produced the more he was able to overcome his anxiety about election and develop a sense of confidence and faith in the Reformation's worldview...

This rather gross misperception is repeated again and again throughout the book so often that it brings into question the validity of their analysis of today's cultural crisis, and particularly their proposed remedy. This distortion of Calvin blinds them to the possibility that the Reformation worldview still might provide the basis for leading us out of our crisis.

All of the above is too bad. It's too bad that their book is so flawed, because the Christian believer is attracted to much of their thesis. For example, they come very near to recognizing the primacy of theology in shaping culture. (Well ... almost. They say that the media is really primary, since, according to them, the printing press modified Reformation theology, and television will modify the theology of the "emerging order." And they make several statements to the effect that the economic climate was a primary factor in producing the first Reformation, and will similarly be foremost in forming a second one ... shades of Chas. Beard's Economic History of the U.S.). They also perceive the place of "covenant" in our history, and the importance of it for the future. They have a firm grasp on the fact that man cannot separate religion and his religious beliefs from the political, social, and economic fabric of any societal entity, and thus many of their critiques of postReformation Western civilization are perceptively pertinent. They can see the cracks. It is when they attempt to trace them to their supposed Calvinistic roots that they go astray.

Some of Rifkin and Howard's analyses suffer from groping through the fog of evolutionary hypotheses. It would not appear so shocking to them to observe the modification of the ecological "gene pool" over the past few hundred years if they were able to set this observation against the biblical background of several millennia of purposeful creation, rather than drowning it in the subjective hunches of humanistic scientists, who project hundreds of millions of years of gradual development.

Again, we read in their book that today's science and technology have tried to play God. And we agree. The authors properly critique the resulting "built in" waste factor (p. 219). And again, we agree . . . with this significant modification . . . that God could be allowing humanistic science and technology to run their course in order to demonstrate their impotence as a satisfactory repository of anyone's "final faith." God in His timing has been revealing that humanistic science is paying some ecological and sociological dividends that are turning to ashes. But now that it is coming to the end of this pretense, ceasing its preposterous posturing as the Savior of the World, and finally abandoning its arbitrarily chosen role as the rebellious Prodigal proposing to "go it alone" without its Creator, perhaps we have finally arrived at the time when science will be truly free to return to the fold of the Faith that founded it. In this return, it will fulfill its proper place as servant to the Laws of God. (cf. Robert Jastrow's God and the Astronomers.) Thus, contrary to the authors thesis, this return could aid and enhance "progress," rather than leading to a vagiie condition of "steady-state" nondevelopment!

But, because of their misperceptions of the Reformation roots of our progress, Rifkin and Howard "lock us in" to only two alternatives for the future. According to them, we have only to choose between the "liberal" view of "dialectic progress," on the one hand, or the "ecology" view of "steady state balance" on the other. And this second state must not be interfered with by man. In positing a condition of "steady state balance," they seem to be advocating a "pure nature" theory where man is viewed as a destructive intruder, instead of a progressive "dominion taker" under mandate from his Creator.

And though they seem to demonstrate the encouraging tendency to take the scriptural view of man seriously, yet they do not offer us the biblical third alternative for the future, namely, the "stewardship view," in which man bows to his Creator by progressively taking dominion of the earth, all the while exercising careful accountability.

Some rather large assumptions are made in the book without proof, for example, the earth as a "closed system." The authors seems to say that it is ... but is the earth's ecology really a "closed system"? The sun is daily pouring energy down into the earth in formidable amounts. Could a growing and dominion-oriented technology not find new ways of harnessing this for man's advancement? Not if the authors' thesis is followed. The possibility of harnessing the sun's energy in new ways, in keeping with man's dominion status under his Creator, is fairly remote, if we accept their statement that the age of progress and growth in technology has come to an end. If man opts for their "steady state" ideas, he certainly will not look skyward to develop the harnessing of more energy, since this would be "breaking the covenant." And since there is no such thing as "steady state" in real life (we're either moving forward or backward) ... we would find civilization going backward to the hoe, and scythe, and the shovel, with a resulting worldwide famine potential that is truly awesome!

The authors seem to identify today's faulty "traditional approach to nature" with Reformation Christianity. But is this justified? One would have a difficult time deriving this "traditional approach" from Calvin, if we successfully avoid their gross caricature of Calvin's doctrine of assurance.

Indeed, why are we forced to choose a "steady state" view as the only alternative to the wasteful corruptions of the "traditional approach"? When man was told to "take dominion" (Gen. 1:28), was he really supposed to leave the creation "fixed"? "Fixed" in what state? The original state before the Fall? But that no longer exists. The Bible says that nature is fallen. Furthermore, now that Christ has come, a "redeemed nature" follows in the wake of a ,, redeemed man," who takes dominion in obedience to the original mandate (Genesis 1). "Fallen man" has been redeemed in the midst of a "fallen nature," and now that man has been redeemed, nature itself is also redeemed (Romans 8), through the increasing obedience of redeemed man to the original creation mandate. This does not fit in very well with "steady state" theorizing!

Agreed, that "dominion does not mean the right to exploit nature" (p. 246). A true "dominion person" does not want to exploit anything ... rather ... he wants to obey! And, man indeed breaks the covenant when using nature for his own ends (p. 247), but is a "dominion person," when using science and technology for God's glory, forced into the authors' view that "Science and technology only serve to speed up the process of decay" (p. 249)? Irving Kristol, professor at the New York University Graduate School of Business, offers a perceptive thought in the September 19, 1980, Wall Street Journal. He says, "Yes, it is very possible-if you wish, even likely-that one of these days both the sun and the Earth may be dead. According to astronomers, that would be many millions of years from now. The idea that we must all live so as to delay that eventuality by perhaps a couple of hundred years is obviously preposterous... "

As noted earlier, it is too bad that this book is so flawed. Another sad example is their statement that Frederick Taylor (in his Principles of Scientific Management, Harper & Bros., 1911) did more than any other man to change the American worker's lifestyle. But again, to propose, as they do, that Taylor's ideas are nearly totally responsible for modern industrial management policies and practices is similar to describing the automotive industry solely in terms of a 1920's sweatshop assembly line producing Model "T" Fords. Much has happened since then to modify the original, of which Rifkin and Howard apparently are not aware.

In the case of Taylor, he did indeed focus on reducing the worker's motions to their simplest possible movements, and then optimizing these movements until their production had reached its peak. But Taylor also made the employee's work easier by these methods so that a man could produce more and be less tired at night. Thus, in some cases, job satisfaction went up, not down.

But Taylor's recommendations were significantly modified later by the impact of the Hawthorne Studies of 1927-1932, which focussed on the worker's environment, attempting to make it more meaningful and pleasant. And later, Abraham Maslow's "hierarchy of needs" further supplemented industry's efforts to help the worker to enjoy his work. Thus it appears that our authors' view of industrial engineering as consisting primarily of time and motion studies with the goal of optimizing the work effort in order to raise the standard of living of the consumer, and all this at the expense of the worker, is nearly as distorted as their concept of Calvin's doctrine of assurance.

But to return to Calvin. The book's distortions of Calvin's doctrine of assurance are really much closer to what Karl Marx actually taught about the nature of man, namely, that man is most accurately viewed as an economically producing animal, than Calvin's teachings (Cf. Reinhold Niebuhr, The Nature and Destiny of Man Vol. I Human Nature, NY, Chas. Scribner's Sons, 1943, p. 33). It may well be that their reliance on secondary, rather than primary, sources (e.g., Martin Marty) is responsible for their error.

In conclusion, the authors' summary of the characteristics of the supposedly past "age of expansion" is worth noting (p. 264). They are, (1) private ownership of resources, (2) increased centralization of power, (3) elimination of diversity, (4) greater reliance on science/ technology, (5) refusal to set limits on production/consumption, (6) fragmentation of human labor into separate spheres of operation, (7) the reductionist approach, and (8) the concept of progress as continually transforming the world into a more valuable and human ordered environment. These are opposed (they say) to the principles of ecology, the "steady-state" economic framework, and the newly defined creation doctrine. "Progress" is to be replaced by "maintenance", "ownership" by "stewardship", and "engineering" by "nurturing". There are biological limits to both production and consumption.

To repeat ... it is too bad that this book is so flawed. Yet , it may still represent a landmark, in the sense that it is evidence of a growing awakening on the part of the nonChristian world to the molding influence of religion ... especially the Christian religion ... even more specifically, Calvinistic Christianity ... in the formation of Western civilization. Our need is to go back to our biblical moorings, in order to move forward in "taking dominion," to the glory of our God!

Reviewed by Ray Joseph, Pastor, Reformed Presbyterian Church, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906.