A Passion for Truth: The Intellectual Coherence of Evangelicalism - Hardcover

Alister McGrath (DPhil, DD, Oxford University) is the Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion at Oxford University. He previously held the chair of theology, ministry and education and was head of the Centre for Theology, Religion & Culture at King's College, London. He is in constant demand as a speaker at conferences throughout the world and is the author of many books including The Dawkins Delusion? and Christianity's Dangerous Idea.

An intellectual circling of the wagons, this combative book targets progressive church leaders, such as Bishop John Spong; liberal academic theologians, such as David Tracy; and pluralist philosophers of religion, such as John Hick. As McGrath notes in the conclusion to his chapter on postmodernism, the book is directed to those inside the circle and to potentially sympathetic bystanders. That the circle is undeniably influential ensures the book a significant audience. McGrath's characterizations of postliberalism, postmodernism, and religious pluralism will teach readers more about Evangelicalism than about the movements in question--but that is not necessarily a weakness. To the extent that McGrath's purpose is to demonstrate "coherence," circling the wagons is entirely appropriate. What that means for academic Evangelicalism is, however, problematic. If academic controversy is war by other means, McGrath's book could play a significant role in rallying evangelical forces--to withstand a siege or to storm the gates of "liberal" academia. But intellectuals organically related to McGrath's circle will need to cultivate a degree of humility if they expect "conversation" with the outside to be more than an exchange of gunfire. Steve Schroeder