Bruce and Stan's Guide to How It All Began

by Bruce Bickel, Stan Jantz

Simple yet comprehensive, Bruce and Stans Guide to How It All Began offers a wise and witty discussion of the scientific difficulties with the theory of evolution; modern scientific evidence pointing to creation and intelligent design; the Christian approach to science; how Genesis relates to the latest scientific finding; and how all these areas affect how we live our daily lives. This fascinating book will help you think clearly and critically about the facts and opinions of science and how they impact our understanding of the Bible.For this volume, Bruce and Stan welcomed the contributions of their own Mr. Science, Dr. John Weister, a professor of science at Westmont College, who served as scientific advisor.

319 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2001

Reviews

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although I do not believe in the old-world creationist view that the authors’ believe, I feel like they didn’t explain their idea of creation well outside of emphasizing the billions of years ago. I’m still unsure if they are day-age or gap theory. I feel like it’s trying to fit the Bible into science disregarding that God can create something with age (Adam wasn’t a baby). But, my lower rating isn’t because of disagreeing (it’s not a salvation issue and people can disagree). It’s more about not feeling like it was explained well. But even more so, there were too many parenthetical remarks that were silly and distracting, making the book hard and, at times, annoying to read. On a positive note, I appreciate the presentation of the gospel message and the emphasis on why knowing what you believe is important for your whole life.

[Kristine Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Silly and not particularly accurate

[Candace Lazzaro · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm loving this book. On the front it says "A User-friendly approach." As one reviewer noted "It's a dumb down explanation to the creation vs Darwinism debate." I'm enjoying it because it is "dumbed-down" enough that I don't have to run to the dictionary or goggle every ten minutes to figure out what it is saying. However there is a real live scientist giving some of the explanations (John) as well as the authors Bruce who is a lawyer and Stan who is in public relations. Of course John, Bruce and Stan are Christians so the debate is one-sided but not as much as you would think. It probably won't appeal to my friend Terry who uses 10 letter words and scientific terms that make even my high IQ (and yes I'm bragging) look small or to my brother Tony who is a Christian but feels that science and theology don't mix... but it's a great book for the rest of us.

OK, I've finished this book and I'm still raving about it. Again, it's not for everyone but it's is good for 1. the Christian looking for a simpler way of arguing the "creator" theory 2. the person who is caught in the middle of the argument and 3. the Darwinist who needs to think about what he thinks. This isn't for the person who wants technical details or has a closed mind (in either direction). It's delightfully humorous without being distracting. It's simple without being simple-minded. And it's a fun read.