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-New Scientist
“Taner Edis makes a compelling case that classical Islamic thought cannot accommodate a modern scientific culture whose basis is experimentation, quantification, and prediction. He exposes the vacuity of faith-based science using a range of examples. But Edis does not rule out an eventual reinterpretation of Muslim theology that will, as in other world religions, eventually allow science and Islam to go their own separate ways.”
Pervez Hoodbhoy, Professor of Physics
Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad
Author of Islam and Science: Religious Orthodoxy and
the Battle for Rationality
Quaid-e-Azam University, Islamabad
Author of Islam and Science: Religious Orthodoxy and
the Battle for Rationality
“In a cultural arena dominated by polemics, Tanner Edis, a historically sensitive Turkish-American physicist, stands out as a voice of reason. I don’t know of a better introduction to science and religion in Islam than An Illusion of Harmony.”
Ronald L. Numbers, author of The Creationists:
From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design
From Scientific Creationism to Intelligent Design
Current discussions in the West on the relation of science and religion focus mainly on science’s uneasy relationship with the traditional Judeo-Christian view of life. But a parallel controversy exists in the Muslim world regarding ways to integrate science with Islam. As physicist Taner Edis shows in this fascinating glimpse into contemporary Muslim culture, a good deal of popular writing in Muslim societies attempts to address such perplexing questions as:
- Is Islam a “scientific religion”?
- Were the discoveries of modern science foreshadowed in the Quran?
- Are intelligent design conjectures more appealing to the Muslim perspective than Darwinian explanations?
Edis examines all of these conflicting trends, revealing the difficulties facing Muslim societies trying to adapt to the modern technological world. His discussions of both the parallels and the differences between Western and Muslim attempts to harmonize science and religion make for a unique and intriguing contribution to this continuing debate.
Taner Edis (Kirksville, MO), born and raised in Turkey, is an associate professor of physics at Truman State University and the author of The Ghost in the Universe: God in Light of Modern Science and Science and Nonbelief, among other publications.
ALT ISBN: 978-1-59102-449-1