Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief (Book Review) (original) (raw)

BOOK REVIEW: The Language of God: a Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief

as a physician-geneticist. Much of his academic life was spent on the HGP and, accordingly, much of the book educates the reader on the significance and findings of the HGP and how genetics' and genomics' knowledge informs his theology. Most prominently, a major portion of the book involves Dr. Collins' working out for the reader of how faith, albeit a principally theistic and Christian religious worldview, and the theory of evolution can be harmonized in light of discoveries of genetic and genomic science. Dr. Collins later followed up this book with another book that takes us into the practical medical applications of the HGP, The Language of Life: DNA and the Revolution in Personalised Medicine (Profile Books, 2010), and an anthology that builds on his religion-related themes, Belief: Readings on the Reason for Faith (Harper Collins, 2010).

THE LANGUAGE OF GOD A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief

The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief is a bestselling book by Francis Collins in which he advocates theistic evolution. Francis Collins is an American physician-geneticist, noted for his landmark discoveries of disease genes, and his leadership of the Human Genome Project (HGP). He currently serves as the Director of the US National Institutes of Health. In the book, Collins describes briefly the process by which he became a Christian.[1][2] Collins raises arguments for the idea of God from biology, astrophysics, psychology and other disciplines. He cites many famous thinkers, most prevalently C. S. Lewis, as well as Saint Augustine, Stephen Hawking, Charles Darwin, Theodosius Dobzhansky and others. In 2007 Christianity Today judged it one of the best books of the previous year.

Reviewing <em>The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief</em&gt

Journal of the scholarship of teaching and learning for Christians in higher education, 2017

The Language of God, written in 2006, spent a good bit of time on the New York Times Bestseller List. It has been the subject of many discussions, debates, and probably even quite a few arguments. Many scientists will probably claim that Francis Collins has "crossed the line" by improperly (in their view) intermingling science with faith. In contrast, many Christians probably welcome this passionate, intellectual believer. Collins, who earned a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from Yale and an M.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, gained worldwide name recognition as head of the Human Genome Project and is considered one of the world's leading scientists. The groundbreaking work of the Human Genome Project succeeded in unlocking the genetic codes embedded in the famous and wondrous aspect of organic chemistry known as DNA.

Review of The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief by Francis Collins

The Journal of Baha'i Studies, 2007

Carol SKreneS TraBinG a young woman checked into the oncology clinic at the university of Michigan seeking information about breast cancer, after her mother, her two sisters, her aunt, and two of her aunt's children had all been diagnosed with the disease. Given their family history, another of her cousins had elected to have a prophylactic double mastectomy rather than take her chances. Was there any new research that would give her hope and allow her to avoid such a drastic measure? luckily for her, a research project by two doctors at the same clinic had recently linked breast cancer with a dangerous mutation in a gene on chromosome 17. Genetic testing showed that she did not carry the mutation that her mother and other affected relatives carried, so there was no need for the surgery. her tremendous relief was followed by genetic testing of other family members, who got their own surprises. The cousin who had had the double mastectomy years before did not carry the mutation after all. Genetic testing showed that their father did carry the dangerous mutation, and that he had in fact passed it on to five of his ten children. The mammogram of one of the daughters revealed a small tumor, which she was able to catch early through the genetic screening. The researcher whose work led to this breakthrough is francis Collinsphysical chemist, medical geneticist and longtime director of the human Genome Project. as a medical geneticist at the university of Michigan, Collins helped discover the genetic basis for cystic fibrosis, neurofibromatosis and huntington's disease. he assumed leadership of the human Genome Project after James Watson's departure, coordinating the work of thousands of geneticists in six countries. The human Genome Project began in 1998 and produced a first-draft mapping of the three billion

God and science: Can we believe in both?

Palliative & Supportive Care, 2005

At a recent scientific conference in New York City, a student asked one of the scientists participating in a panel discussion on science and religion a provocative question. “Can you be a good scientist and also believe in God?” The scientist, a Nobel laureate, quickly responded: “Belief in the supernatural, especially belief in God, is not only incompatible with good science, this kind of belief is damaging to the well-being of the human race!” But disdain for religion is far from universal among scientists. Francis Collins, who directs the U.S. National Genome Research Institute and was head of the first team to map the entire human genome, is an example of a highly visible and respected scientist who also openly embraces a religious Christian faith. As palliative care clinicians and researchers, we, as well as our patients, are constantly confronted with this very dilemma: the age-old tension between faith and reason, God and science.