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Summer Book List - Week 3

Collated by Stephen Lillicrap in no particular order. Most of these books are available on Amazon and St Andrews bookshop. Some may be out of print but Stephen is happy to lend them. Summer Reading

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

The contents of this book were first given as three separate radio broadcasts during the war in 1943 and 1944 and introduced Christianity to the war-time population in an exciting and stimulating way. This book together with the early Billy Graham mission were key in bringing me to faith.

Who Moved the Stone by Frank Morrison

This is another book from the 1950s. Frank Morrison set out, as a convinced unbeliever, to use his legal mind to examine what really happened between the arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and the discovery of the empty tomb. In examining all the evidence he became convinced of the truth and the book he intended to use to debunk the gospel account became the opposite. I think that the book has been reprinted recently.

A London Sparrow by Phyllis Thompson

This is a biography of Gladys Aylward, a London parlourmaid who overcame all obstacles to become a missionary in China, where, with great faith and indomitable courage, she worked for twenty years from 1932. When the Japanese came to bomb, ravage and kill, she led a hundred homeless children on a terrible twelve-day march over the mountains to the Yellow River and safety. Her exploits were turned into a film “The Inn of Sixth Happiness”. As a schoolgirl Geraldine met her at the home of a Christian teacher. She was a small gracious friendly woman.

What's so Amazing about Grace by Philip Yancey

I will just mention this book as it is also on Tom’s list. It is a book to restore “Dispensing Grace” as the central mission of the church if we are to be effective witnesses.

C.S. Lewis, A Life by Alister McGrath

C.S. Lewis was a towering influential Christian apologist and literary scholar of the last century whose spiritual beliefs are reflected in the seven volumes that comprise The Chronicles of Narnia and who wrote Mere Christianity mentioned above. This is a meticulously researched, insightful account of a fascinating man’s life. He was a bit like David of the Old Testament, greatly used by God despite some human failings.

I have always been interested in the purported challenges to our faith from modern scientific enquiry and the next three books from leaders in their different fields write about these challenges in the fields of the physical sciences, including cosmology, genetics, including evolution, and the mind. They are all in search of the truth and all written for a lay, non-expert, readership.

Quarks, Chaos and Christianity by John Polkinghorne

John Polkinghorne is an eminent Cambridge physicist and now a clergyman. The questions he tackles in a clear, lively and frank set of answers are: Is science fact and religion just opinion? Is there the mind of a Creator behind the universe? Can a scientist pray?

The Language of God by Francis Collins

Francis Collins is head of the Human Genome Project and one of the world’s leading scientists. He explains his own journey from atheism to faith and then takes his readers on a stunning tour of modern science showing that it can fit together with a belief in God and the Bible. It is subtitled “A scientist presents evidence for belief” and tackles deep questions of: Why are we here? How did we get here? And what does life mean?

All in the Mind by Peter Clarke

Peter Clarke was an eminent neuroscientist and Christian all his career. He writes “Modern Neuroscience raises challenges for many of our most basic ethical and religious beliefs”. He gives a compelling defence of religious belief in the face of apparent challenges from neuroscience, psychology and genetics. He describes how the brain works and the relationship between brain mechanisms, mind, consciousness, free will, morality and spiritual beliefs and experiences.

Tali Garan, 28/07/2020