Book Review: Christ and the Created Order Edited by Andrew B. Torrance and Thomas H. McCall

Introduction 

Christ and the Created Order is the second volume of a two-volume set edited by Andrew B. Torrance and Thomas H. McCall (Volume 1 is entitled Knowing Creation and can be found here). This volume focuses in on the often-neglected function of Jesus Christ within the doctrine of creation. Similar to the first volume, Christ and the Created Order takes a look at the role of Christ from the perspectives of scripture, theology, history, philosophy, and science. Also like the first volume, it contains sixteen essays, four of which address theological concerns, four of which address biblical and historical concerns, four of which address philosophical concerns, and four of which address scientific concerns. Taken together, this book provides a holistic look into the role of Jesus in creating the world in order to help build a more complete doctrine of creation as a whole.

Theological Perspectives

The book begins with an essay by Murray Rae, who takes a detailed look at the implications of being made “in and through Christ,” as Paul writes in his letter to the Colossians. For starters, it demands that everything about the physical world depends on God for its existence. Furthermore, it entails that the universe is so ordered to be suitable for God’s purposes. This means that fields such as science, history, and even art all contribute to our understanding of creation. But, according to Rae, if any field of inquiry is to be fully understood, it must be understood in light of the fact that Christ is the one who brought it into being and continues to uphold its existence

In chapter 2, Norman Wirzba narrows the focus even more to discuss what it means to be made through Christ. As a result of being made through Christ, all of creation exists as an expression of God’s goodness and beauty, and God is increasingly glorified when His creation responds to and accepts His gifts to them. According to Wirzba, it is Jesus who provides us with the relationship to the creator that allows us to fully live life according to God’s gifts. Wirzba continues to argue for a meshwork account of creation where what we are is defined by our relationship to the rest of creation rather than by individual facts about our unique selves.

Brian Bock argues in chapter 3 that because human beings are animals according to biological classifications of created life, the definition of “human” is ultimately vocational in nature, rather than biological in nature. Specifically, human beings are created to be in community with God. While Bock’s essay may read like an affirmation of Darwinian evolutionary theory at times, he thoroughly rejects the notion that humanity can be reduced to our biological status. Instead, it is specifically because God has chosen to have a special relationship with humans that we exist as something separate from the rest of the creatures.

In chapter 4, Brian Curry takes a look at one facet of creation: the “powers” of this world. Such powers, according to the New Testament, exist as an embattled part of creation. In a way, the powers of this world are understood as fallen parts of creation that shape our experiences of it, often negatively. Nevertheless, Christ has attained victory over them and has thus attained victory over this world.

Biblical and Historical Perspectives

Beginning the second section, N.T. Wright highlights the necessity of placing Christ as central to a full understanding of creation. Wright’s contention is that we typically think of God creating the universe first, and then factor Jesus into the picture after the fact, but we should instead think of creation itself as the self-giving love of God. Furthermore, it is by looking at Jesus that we discover the fullness of what creation is.

In chapter 6, Richard Bauckham emphasizes the role of eyewitness testimony in the Gospel narratives. This essay functions as an updated version of an argument he made in his book Jesus and the Eyewitnesses, here containing a detailed consideration of the field of cognitive psychology. Bauckham distinguishes between different types of memory, identifies how memories can be altered over time, and how each factor relates to the Gospel accounts. He concludes that while memories may be unreliable with respect to secondary details of events, they are reliable with respect to the fact that the events occurred, which ultimately supports the reliability of the eyewitness accounts in the Gospels.

In chapter 7, Erin Heim engages in a detailed analysis of the adoption metaphors throughout scripture and demonstrates how they lead to a “Christocentric anthropology.” In other words, according to scripture, our adoption into God’s family is centered around the person of Christ, and this adoption is our purpose as human beings. Furthermore, the act of adoptions itself reveals to us who God is.

Throughout chapter 8, Chris Tilling assesses the function of time in the Apostle Paul’s theology. Paul, it is argued, has a distinct notion of theological time that is not strictly sequential. Instead, the past works of Christ are not exclusively in the past, but are instead in both the present and future. According to a Pauline view of time, events have not exclusively proceeded from before Christ to after Christ, rather, time itself is bent around Christ.

Philosophical Perspectives

Marilyn McCord Adams opens up the next section by outlining how the doctrine of Christ’s incarnation relates to the doctrine of creation. Simply put, the incarnation is where God enters the physical world, and thus makes salvation possible. But it is more than merely a rescue mission, rather, the incarnation is where God takes complete solidarity with material creation. While it is in humans that creation becomes as God-like as possible, the incarnation is where God becomes as much like His creation as possible without ceasing to be God.

In chapter 10, James Smith presents a unique position that Christians should expect conflict between science and theology. Smith draws a parallel with the Council of Chalcedon, which expressed that Christ was one person with two natures. According to Smith, a theological conclusion like the hypostatic union of Christ could have only arisen out of the Church coming together to work through the conflict. It is thus only in the form of congregations coming together, in Christ, to wrestle with difficult ideas that creation can truly be known.

Paul Moser argues in chapter 11 that knowledge of God must differ from scientific knowledge of creation. The nature of an object, according to Moser, must be considered whenever one inquires about that object. Since God has an interpersonal nature and objects of science do not, no amount of study of the natural sciences can provide direct knowledge of God. Furthermore, Inquiry into God must consider His perfect moral character. Therefore, rather than looking to the physical world to know God, one must look to the effects of God on personal agents.

In chapter 12, J.B. Stump assumes a Christocentric understanding of creation, and from there argues that both our theological explanations and our scientific explanations must be brought together. He begins his argument by affirming both the claim that God intentionally created human beings and the claim that evolution is the best scientific explanation of the origin of humans. Stump then constructs a series of seven premises with two intermediate conclusions, ultimately concluding that humans are too epistemically limited to fully make sense of the world. Thus, God’s intentional creation of humans and the evolutionary origins of humans are both legitimate explanations within their respective representations of reality even if they do not seem compatible.

Scientific Perspectives

Deborah and Loren Haarsma address in chapter 13 the idea that the vastness of the universe can result in an intimidating sense of insignificance. But this is only if Christ is not considered. For followers of Christ, the wonder if the universe is not just its vastness, but rather the knowledge that it was created by the person of God. Even more astonishing is the recognition that Christ, by becoming human, connected himself with all life on earth. Thus, the cosmos itself stands as a reflection of God’s love.

In chapter 14, Tyler Greenway and Justin Barrett explore the implications of cognitive science on the view that humans were created with a sense of the divine. After an overview of the different themes in the field of cognitive science of religion, Greenway and Barrett argue that human beings have multiple senses that allow us to sense and reflect on God. However, such senses have been affected by sin, and therefore Christ is necessary to overcome the limitations brought about by sin.

Wilson Poon’s essay in chapter 15 is not a traditional essay. Rather than containing a single thesis with supporting arguments, Poon provides twenty-eight theses pertaining to the dialogue between science and religion within the Church, followed by brief reflections about each. The theses are blunt, and at times abrasive, nevertheless it all comes together so that he can hint at a theology of science whereby scientific methodological naturalism can resonate with the Christian God.

In chapter 16, Ruth Bancewicz closes off this volume by reflecting on how Christians can engage in science as an act of worship. God is the author of this world, and therefore Christians ought to take the study of it seriously. Furthermore, when one has the knowledge of who God is and how He has been revealed in Jesus Christ, one’s work as a scientist becomes transformed into the prime opportunity to enjoy God’s creation.

In Conclusion

As I reflect on this book I can’t help but make some brief observations. For starters, the editors have done something unique by gathering a broad group of experts together to address the specific point of Christ’s relationship to creation. That alone is enough to make Christ and the Created Order a valuable resource. Furthermore, the essays are all of high quality and ultimately thought provoking, even though the reader may disagree with some points made throughout. While no two essays are created equal, the overall content should satisfy any reader.