God's Own Scientists: Creationists in a Secular World

By Christopher P. Toumey and Professor Christopher P. Toumey

Book Overview

For more than five years, Christopher P. Toumey talked with contemporary creationists, joined in their Bible study and prayer groups, and interviewed their leaders in order to understand their heartfelt opposition to the idea of evolution. The modern creationist movement is, Toumey argues, much more than a narrow doctrine extrapolated from a handful of biblical verses; rather, it represents a broad cultural discontent with the moral disintegration of modern America--and a remarkable faith in science itself.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0813520436
• ISBN13: 9780813520438
• Release Date: April 1994
• Publisher: Rutgers University Press
• Length: 280 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.3" x 0.8" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

Must reading on the creation/evolution controversy

Christopher P. Toumey brings a social anthropologist's perspective to the topic of "scientific creationism." He explins the origin and nature of the national creation science movement, and explores how the movement influences conservative Christians at the local level. If you've ever wondered what the differences are between the Creation Research Society, the Creation-Science Research Center, and the Institude for Creation Research, you'll find these and other national creationist organizations sorted out here. The most interesting part of the book, though, is the section that describes how the creation/evolution controversy played out in North Carolina in the early 1980s, in the context of local politics, both secular and Baptist. Also fascinating is the glimpse given of a local creation-science study group, whose members come across as considerably less dogmatic and more sympathetic than one might have expected. Toumey covers some of the same ground as the more exhaustive and scholarly "The Creationists" by Ronald Numbers, but in a more readable and entertaining style. With controversy over the teaching of evolution in the public schools once again generating headlines, Toumey's book is must reading for anyone interested in this issue.