Wisdom & Wonder: Common Grace in Science & Art, Abraham Kuyper, edited by Jordan J. Ballor and Stephen J. Grabill, Trans. Nelson D. Kloosterman, Christian’s Library Press, Grand Rapids, Michigan, 2011, e-book edition.
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With the rising faith in science in Western culture, there needs to be further investigation into the theological and philosophical underpinnings of the phenomenon called science. Abraham Kuyper holds that when we put the “destruction of many people’s faith brought about by the so-called results of science†and “the mocking tone with which people of science almost systematically speak about the revelation of Scripture and about things that are holy†(pg. 50) it makes sense that many in the church are at least suspicious of science, and at most, hostile towards it. Yet, for Kuyper, this does not need to be if we understand what science truly is. In his book, Wisdom and Wonder, Abraham Kuyper explores what science is and what it rests upon.
In the beginning of this book, Kuyper argues that science is independent from theology, that it is “a unique creature of God, with its own principle of life, created to develop in conformity with that principle of life, that is, to develop in freedom.†(pg. 35) Science is a created entity, with a divine purpose that is not theological in form, and should not be chained to theology. For “Science has not demanded such independence in overconfidence . . . (and) neglects its divine calling if it permits itself again to become a servant of the state or the church.†(pg. 34) Here Kuyper opens science to itself, and calls it to be itself. We often want science to conform to theology, or theology to conform to science, but this is not the way that they are designed. Science and theology are distinct and separate disciplines and should be permitted to be. They are not antithetical in essence, but in what they are called to achieve. [Read more…] about Book Review: Wisdom & Wonder: Common Grace in Science & Art