Secular Hermeneutics
The Bible, Protestantism, and the Rise of Natural Science
by Peter Harrison
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998
(313 pages; $64.95, cloth)
reviewed by James Altena
As a whole, Peter Harrison’s The Bible, Protestantism, and the Rise of Natural Science will likely attract only a few academic specialists among Touchstone readers. However, its central thesis and specific insights are of much more general interest because of their implications for current controversies involving science and religion, such as the critique of evolution by proponents of Intelligent Design featured in the July/August 1999 issue.
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James A. Altena is the associate editor of Fanfare magazine, a comprehensive bimonthly periodical for reviews of classical music recordings. He is a member of All Saints Episcopal Church in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania, and is pursuing a Ph.D. in church history at Westminster Theological Seminary in Glenside, Pennsylvania.
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