A Scientific Theology: Reality

Book excerpt: A Scientific Theology is a ground-breaking work of systematic theology in three volumes: Nature, Reality, and Theory. Written by one of the world's best-known theologians, these volumes together represent the most extended and systematic exploration of the relation between Christian theology and the natural sciences yet produced. Thoroughly ecumenical in approach, A Scientific Theology is a significant work for Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant and evangelical readers. Each volume is marked throughout by a sustained and critical engagement with the history and philosophy of the natural sciences and by a passionate commitment to the legitimacy of theology as an academic discipline. The three volumes together attempt to present an essentially linear argument from nature to theory, so that questions of how reality is represented will be dealt with entirely in the final volume, though preliminary discussions of aspects of reality are naturally included in this present volume. The second volume in the series thus provides a detailed and thorough examination and defense of theological realism. Its themes are set against the backdrop of radical changes in Western philosophy and theology resulting from the collapse of the Enlightenment project and the consequent fragmentation of intellectual discourse. Engaging critically with writers such as George Lindbeck and John Milbank, McGrath offers a sparkling and sophisticated affirmation of theological realism against its modern and postmodern critics. His refutation of the claim that the rise of philosophical nonfoundationalism entails the abandoning of any form of realism is of particular importance, as is his application of the highly influential form of "critical realism" developed by Roy Bhaskar. Viewed as a whole, Reality represents a sustained engagement with natural theology as the basis of a broader dialogue between the Christian tradition and other religious traditions. Book jacket.