Have you ever wondered in this century if there was a place where spirituality and good evolutionary science could be brought together? Have you longed for a simple explanation of some of its key tenets?

Thank God for Evolution! may just answer your questions. Subtitled "How the marriage of science and religion will transform your life and our world," it's by Michael Dowd, an ordained clergyman in the Disciples of Christ. As John Mather, NASA chief scientist and 2006 Nobel Prize winner in physics, notes, "the universe took 13.7 billion years to produce this amazing book."

The book jacket proclaims that "drawing upon cutting edge astrophysics, geology, biology, anthropology, and evolutionary brain science, this book presents the history of the universe as an epic drama where our generation has a critical role to play."

I found this book giving me an accurate understanding of the current evidence of evolution from a scientific perspective in clear language. The book demonstrated that we are indeed created of star dust from exploding supernovas.

Dowd takes the reader on a transformative spiritual journey to get beyond second century Flat Earth theology and culture, moving instead to a theological understanding which recognizes that God is God of the Universe who has created and speaks to us through the evidence and fingerprint of our own evolutionarily created 13.7 billion year old world. He explores the roots of the diversity of theology, personality, sexual attraction and abilities within the human species as a natural part of life centered in God.

There are problems. His dependence upon charismatic conservative evangelical theological spirituality flies in the face of all his scientific exploration. However, his struggle with his cultural roots is an honest snapshot of his efforts to break away from the flat earth religious culture and is reflective of my own journey in faith.

People known to readers in this diocese have contributed to the book. These include Matthew Fox, Diarmuid O'Murchu, John Spong, and Sally McFague among many others.

I commend Thank God for Evolution! for personal and parish study as it gives the reader insight into who we are as evolutionarily created beings living connectively together on this small environmentally sensitive planet Earth.