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Christianity and Darwinism The debate between Howard J. Van Till and Phillip E. Johnson (“God and Evolution: An Exchange,” June/July) sounds a lot like an argument about the number of angels that can dance on the head of a pin. Unless one is a hopeless solipsist, the universe exists. And if it . . . . Continue Reading »

On Women’s Ordination Michael Novak’s article “Women, Ordination, and Angels” (April) represents the essence of your fine journal. We sometimes need prompting to think about the thorny issues facing the Church, and Mr. Novak’s article made me do precisely that. His . . . . Continue Reading »

The Church and Abortion: In Search of New Ground for Response edited by paul t. stallsworth Abingdon, 152 pages, $10.95 paper Although it is prepared by and for Methodists, you don’t have to be a Methodist to welcome this important contribution. The contributors are Ruth S. Brown, Michael J. . . . . Continue Reading »

The Church and the Left by adam michnik, edited, translated, and with an Introduction by David Ost University of Chicago Press, 301 pages, $24.95 First published in Paris in 1977 and smuggled back into Poland as samizdat, Adam Michnik’s Church, Left, Dialogue (the book’s original title) was a . . . . Continue Reading »

Ambassador to the Vatican? Four false assumptions are operative in your Public Square comment “Reopening Wounds” (March). The first is that those who oppose the United States sending an ambassador to the Vatican do so because they want to drive religion from the public square. The second is . . . . Continue Reading »

Gays on Parade? In his article “Homosexuality in Uniform: Is It Time?” (February), Eugene T. Gomulka would have been better off arguing his point from a pure theological/moral basis instead of relying on the same old myths concerning gay men and women that society is slowly rejecting as . . . . Continue Reading »

Prospects for a Common Morality edited by gene outka and john p. reeder, jr. princeton university press, 302 pages, $47.50 cloth, $16.95 paper Eleven distinguished ethicists weigh in on the question of whether there is a universal morality, relevant to all cultures and traditions by virtue of . . . . Continue Reading »

Newman and His Age by Sheridan Gilley Christian Classics, 485 pages, $39.95 Wilfred Ward did it, Meriol Trevor did it, and, more recently, Ian Ker did it, and one might have thought that there was no need for another biography of John Henry Newman. But, as is often the case, we don’t know what we . . . . Continue Reading »

Johnson on Trial? The publication of Phillip E. Johnson’s meandering and emotional diatribe against “Darwinism” in First Things (“Creator or Blind Watchmaker?” January) was deeply disappointing. To begin with, the failure of the magazine to identify Mr. Johnson as a law professor, not a . . . . Continue Reading »

From Synagogue to Church: Public Services and Offices in the Earliest Christian Communities by james tunstead burtchaell cambridge university press, 375 pages, $59.95 In the tired debate whether the priesthood is of the esse or the bene esse of the Church James Burtchaell offers a provocative . . . . Continue Reading »