Pascal’s Fire: Scientific Faith and Religious Understanding

In the midst of global resurgence of interest in religion, and especially religion’s relation to modern scientific knowledge, "Pascal’s Fire" offers an erudite and original perspective. Many scientists have written about religion; a few theologians have written about science.  However, this is the first contemporary volume in which a theologian takes on science in its own territory. Contrary to Nietzsche’s famous assertion, best-selling author Keith Ward argues that God is far from dead. In fact, the rapidly expanding boundaries of scientific discovery, which many attribute to His murder, actually provide persuasive evidence for His existence. By examining how four ground-breaking changes in the history of scientific discourse (the Earth as the center of the universe, the Newtonian revolution, Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and quantum physics) affect our conception of God, Ward argues that each individual challenge elicits a new updated concept of God rather than an obituary. Dealing with modern critics, such as Richard Dawkins, Ward claims that the key is not to conceive of God as frequently interventionist, nor as exclusively concerned with the human experience. Rather, His role is as the creator of an exquisite and infinitely beautiful universe that depends upon a number of precise mathematical relationships for its existence. Combining cutting edge science with thought provoking discourses about morality, religion and the meaning of life, Keith Ward provides a fascinating take on the science versus religion debate, offering ‘a third way’ which is guaranteed to spark debate for years to come.