From Booklist
*Starred Review* Often invoked as justification for unbelief, modern science here provides the basis for an unusual and provocative affirmation of religious faith. A physicist at the University of Delaware, Barr deploys his scientific expertise to challenge the dogmas of materialism and to assert his belief that nothing explains the order of the galaxies better than divine design. To be sure, Barr recognizes that Darwin's work has swept away the arguments of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century theologians, who traced the handiwork of God in birds, flowers, and seashells. But the old argument-from-design reemerges with new sophistication after Barr presses evolutionary theory for a plausible account of the origin of what quantum physics demands--that is, a conscious observer--and comes away with nothing but skepticism about the skeptics. Barr indeed relishes the irony of a skeptical logic of random chance that forces unbelievers who balk at one unobservable God to accept, on doctrinal faith, a myriad of unobservable worlds on which the matter-motion lottery has not produced the winning ticket of conscious intelligence. The absurdity grows even more palpable among astrophysicists who avoid acknowledging the human-friendly pattern in subatomic and cosmic architecture found in the observable universe only by theorizing the existence of an infinite number of unobservable universes in which sovereign randomness has dictated other and more hostile architectures. Neither religiously sectarian nor technically daunting, this is a book that invites the widest range of readers to ponder the deepest kind of questions. Bryce Christensen
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

ForeWord magazine, Spring 2003
"The author's ability to explain complex scientific theory in an enlightening manner makes [this] book worth reading . . ."

Library Journal, March 15, 2003
"[A] well-written and logically argued presentation on the relationship between religion and science . . ."

National Review, April 21, 2003
"Barr has produced a stunning tour de force ... [a] scientific and philosophical breakthrough."

First Things, November 1 2003, No. 137 pg. 54
"… worthy of widespread notice, discussion, and debate. … accessible, insightful, and fair …."

The Jewish Press, March 19, 2004
"…Barr’s clarity and logic is invaluable in his description of physical processes and scientific theories…."

Catholic Library World, September 2003, Vol. 74 No. 1
"[A] well-written book and an important contribution to the ongoing debate on the relationship between science and religion."

The Criterion, April 23, 2004
"...I highly recommend ... not only for college curriculum but also for advanced teens with such scientific-and-faith interests."

From the Inside Flap
A considerable amount of public debate and media print has been devoted to the "war between science and religion." In his accessible and eminently readable new book, Stephen M. Barr demonstrates that what is really at war with religion is not science itself, but a philosophy called scientific materialism. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith argues that the great discoveries of modern physics are more compatible with the central teachings of Christianity and Judaism about God, the cosmos, and the human soul than with the atheistic viewpoint of scientific materialism. Scientific discoveries from the time of Copernicus to the beginning of the twentieth century have led many thoughtful people to the conclusion that the universe has no cause or purpose, that the human race is an accidental by-product of blind material forces, and that the ultimate reality is matter itself. Barr contends that the revolutionary discoveries of the twentieth century run counter to this line of thought. He uses five of these discoveries—the Big Bang theory, unified field theories, anthropic coincidences, Gödel’s Theorem in mathematics, and quantum theory—to cast serious doubt on the materialist’s view of the world and to give greater credence to Judeo-Christian claims about God and the universe. Barr’s clear and elegant writing is in the best tradition of science for the non-physicist or non-mathematician and will appeal to anyone interested in science and religion.

About the Author
STEPHEN M. BARR is professor of physics at the Bartol Research Institute, University of Delaware.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

A considerable amount of public debate and media print has been devoted to the "war between science and religion." In his accessible and eminently readable new book, Stephen M. Barr demonstrates that what is really at war with religion is not science itself, but a philosophy called scientific materialism. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith argues that the great discoveries of modern physics are more compatible with the central teachings of Christianity and Judaism about God, the cosmos, and the human soul than with the atheistic viewpoint of scientific materialism. Scientific discoveries from the time of Copernicus to the beginning of the twentieth century have led many thoughtful people to the conclusion that the universe has no cause or purpose, that the human race is an accidental by-product of blind material forces, and that the ultimate reality is matter itself. Barr contends that the revolutionary discoveries of the twentieth century run counter to this line of thought. He uses five of these discoveries -- the Big Bang theory, unified field theories, anthropic coincidences, Godel's Theorem in mathematics, and quantum theory -- to cast serious doubt on the materialist's view of the world and to give greater credence to Judeo-Christian claims about God and the universe. Barr's clear and elegant writing is in the best tradition of science for the non-physicist or non-mathematician and will appeal to anyone interested in science and religion.

FROM THE CRITICS

Library Journal