ISBN 978-0-393-33048-9 pbk
Pastor, I am grateful for your
attention. As a scientist who has spent a lifetime studying the creation, I
have done my best here to brief you and others on subjects I hope will be more
a part of out common concern. My foundation of reference has been the culture
of science and some of secularism based on science, as I understand them. From
that foundation I have focused on the interaction of three problems that affect
everyone: the decline of the living environment, the inadequacy of scientific
education, and the moral confusions caused by the exponential growth of
biology. In order to solve these problems, I’ve argued, it will be necessary to
find common ground on which the powerful forces of religion and science can be
joined. The best place to start is the stewardship of life.
So begins
Chapter 17, the final chapter, of Edward O. Wilson’s book, The Creation. Wilson wrote the book as a letter to a Southern
Baptist preacher, and has no fear of directly referring to their differences.
He begins with a reference to his own early experiences in the faith, his
departure from it, and their common roots as Southerners.
Within the
framework of this unique approach, Wilson
describes subjects already known to his readers: the importance of nature as
our home, the destruction of nature by habitat loss, invasive species and other
causes, and the love of nature (Biophilia). The
Creation is a book long appeal for science and religion to find common
ground and protect the natural world.
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