The author Dr Francis Collins is the longtime Head of the Human Genome Project which with twenty public centres in six countries produced the first full DNA sequence of the human genome - the genetic code of human life.
He also helped to discover the mutations responsible for causing cystic fibrosis and two other genetic diseases.
The book, highly praised by leading Christian authors in the area of science and faith, including Kenneth Miller and Alister McGrath, is an extremely readable one in which Dr Collins frankly traces his own personal search and journey from agnosticism and atheism to a belief in the God of the Bible and his overwhelming conviction of the compatibility of science and faith.
The book is divided into three parts in addition to a helpful appendix on bioethics. I would unreservedly recommend it to anyone interested in the relationship between science and faith, and the contribution of genomics to the origin of life.
In "Part One: The Chasm Between Science And Faith', Dr Collins recounts how he began to reassess his atheistic views during the later years of his medical training in the light of the strong faith of many of his seriously ill and dying patients.
Aged 26, he read C.S. Lewis' Mere Christianity and his other writings, finding that "[f]aith in God now seemed more rational than disbelief". He worked through four major philosophical objections to belief in God, and found them to be quite inadequate. Later in the book he tells how he personally came to a belief in the God of the Bible and surrendered his life to Jesus Christ.
In "Part Two: The Great Questions Of Human Existence', Dr Collins starts by tracing our understanding of the origins of the universe in the light of scientific discovery, dealing with such topics as the Big Bang, what came before it, the formation of the solar system and the planet earth, and the anthropic principle, which highlights the improbability of a universe like ours emerging out of something like the Big Bang. He also comments on Quantum Mechanics and the Uncertainty Principle and harmonizes all such topics with the idea of a creator God and the early chapters of Genesis.
He then outlines the origin of life on earth from microbes to man. He starts by discussing the argument from design and its limitations, before going on to outline what we know of the timeline for the origin of life on earth. He cites the increasing mass of fossil evidence, including transition species, discovered over recent years to further underpin an evolutionary origin for life on earth and notes that Darwin himself was concerned about harmony between his theory for the origin of species with it having been created God.
Collins then briefly outlines the recent developments in our understanding of DNA the hereditary material which can now provide a physical basis for the evolution of life. He states this should not diminish our view of creation, concluding that "[f]or those who believe in God, there are reasons now to be more in awe, not less".
In chapter five, entitled "Deciphering God's Instruction book', he briefly traces his own early experiences in genetics to determine the single amino acid mutations in genetic diseases and how later he came to lead the Human Genome Project team that successfully sequenced the entire human genome in 2003.
He then discusses some of the surprises that arose from all this DNA sequencing on both humans and other species. At a DNA level humans are 99.9% identical. While in the coding of proteins in mammals, there is a remarkable degree of sequence identity (99%), the random DNA segments between genes are much less identical. Indeed, he reveals how comparisons of these random DNA segments can enable the determination of a tree of life which tracks the ancestry of each species. He concludes that the study of genomes has provided "molecular support for the theory of evolution that has convinced virtually all working biologists of its correctness."
In ‘Part Three: Faith In Science, Faith In God’, Collins considers the relationship between science and faith. He starts by discussing the reasons for lack of public acceptance, particularly in America, of the theory of evolution. In particular, he outlines the importance, language and message of Genesis and the 5th century writings of Saint Augustine on the interpretation of the creation accounts in the light of future scientific discoveries. He draws lessons from the controversy between Galileo and the Church about apparent contradictions between science and biblical interpretation.
He then outlines four major positions with respect to the relationship of science and faith: Option 1: Atheism and Agnosticism (When Science Trumps Faith). He successfully counters some extremely vocal evolutionary atheistic proponents like Richard Dawkins, who erroneously argue that evolution has done away with the need for God.
Option 2: Creationism (When Faith Trumps Science). Collins considers that the views of "Creationists" who insist on a literal reading of Genesis 1 and 2 and Young Earth Creationists, who interpret the days of creation as twenty-four hour days with the earth less than ten thousand years old are incompatible with the overwhelming evidence of modern science, and that such views are damaging to faith.
Option 3: Intelligent Design (When Science Needs Divine Help). He believes that "Intelligent Design" does deserve serious consideration, but in reviewing the evidence presented by its advocates concludes that it "fails fundamentally to qualify as a scientific theory". He also believes that its major assertion amounts to a "God of the gaps" approach to science, which risks faith being discredited when advances in science fill those gaps.
Option 4: BioLogos (Science and Faith in Harmony). He finds such a position which harmonizes "scientific truth" and "spiritual truth", also labeled "theistic evolution", in which "God created the universe and established the natural laws that govern it" is "by far the most scientifically consistent and spiritually satisfying".
In conclusion, he, like me, is especially concerned that there should be "a truce in the escalating war between science and [faith]". For scientists - "[s]cience is not threatened by God; it is enhanced". For believers " "God is most certainly not threatened by science; He made it all possible".
