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personal basis; 2) a biblical-based spirituality and method oftheological reflection; and 3) a commitment to living theGospel in the modern world through communal worship andcommunity service. The twenty-six essays in this volumeprovide thumbnail sketches of not only the life and work,but also the successes and limitations of select communitieson six continents. On the one hand, the helpful aspect ofthese essays is that they collectively provide informationabout these worldwide communities, their aspirations andtheir challenges; for example, most of these communitiesengage in some type of charitable work for the poor anddisadvantaged in their area; simultaneously, many of thesecommunities have ambivalent relations with the institu-tional church, and some have experienced tensions withchurch officials. On the other hand, readers of this book whoare not familiar with such communities may find it difficultto gain a real feel for the personal motivation and innerdynamics of these communities: the book at times seemsmore a coded dialogue among “insiders” than a conversationwith “outsiders.” However, readers who want to learn moreabout small Christian communities will benefit from theannotated bibliography and a list of resources, both print andelectronic, which provide many useful references.

John T. FordCatholic University of America

PRAYERS FOR THIS LIFE. Edited by ChristopherHowse. London: Continuum Books, 2005. Pp. xx + 203.$21.95, ISBN 978-0-8264-8071-2.

Howse collects some of the finest poetic works inEnglish—found not only in compilations of poets, but also inhymn texts, spiritual prose reflections, and liturgicalprayers from the Book of Common Prayer—and divides theminto chapters reflecting different aspects of a person’s rela-tionship to God as known through communal Christian wor-ship. He makes some concessions to non-English writers,particularly to Augustine and Latin liturgical and devotionaltexts, although one would have liked to have seen the greatliturgical poem/hymn The Exsultet in the chapter on Crossand Resurrection. His deferral to Augustine reveals both hisand the contributors’ (ancient and less ancient) dominanttheological framework beginning with Augustine’s empha-sis on God the “self-same” in the Vulgate translation of Ps 4.Thus, “God” in these writings is strongly masculine andhierarchical. Howse does not take into consideration theinclusive-language issue so important to theological andliturgical thinking and practice today. Because of this orien-tation, women’s voices are singularly lacking except for theclassic examples of Julian of Norwich, C. Winkwork, and C.Rossetti. Also silent are the voices of contemporary Englishwomen poets and hymn writers and contemporary NorthAmerican hymn and liturgical writers such as G. Ramshawor S. Dunstan. The liturgical scholar might also be a littlesurprised about the genealogy of some of the prayers andsome of Howse’s assertions (there are, for example, not five“O” antiphons but seven). An important question that this

collection raises (by its absence) is whether or not prayer issimply about “my” relationship to God. The spiritual tradi-tion of both East and West has always stressed prayer asdialogue, not only between the soul and God but alsobetween the soul and the neighbor, the “other” who comesto us as Jesus Christ. Recommended for congregational studyor individual use.

Dirk G. LangeLutheran Theological Seminary

Philosophy of ReligionPHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ON INFINITY.By Graham Oppy. New York: Cambridge University Press,2006. Pp. xvii + 316. $75.00, ISBN 978-0-521-86067-3.

This book studies the nature of infinity primarily inrelation to questions arising from mathematics. It grew outof preparatory work for a further book on the philosophy ofreligion. The text begins with a list of mathematical puzzlesregarding infinite numbers. The second chapter gives apreliminary survey of mathematical theory regarding infinity.Those without a background in higher mathematics may findthis part difficult. What is presented here is then applied tothe puzzles in the first chapter. Following this are two chap-ters on infinity in relation to space and time, then a chapteron infinity in relation to probability theory and another onquestions arising from mereology, the study of the relationof parts to a whole. Along the way, numerous observationsare made as a central paradox gradually emerges. The con-cept of infinity presents itself as soon as people begin towonder where a continuing series of divisions, additions,subtractions or multiplications might lead. Yet whether aninfinite actually exists in history remains an open question.The notion of infinity remains a teasing concept, present tothe human mind and yet difficult to coherently conceptualize.This book is well written, with helpful introductions and sum-maries. It does not engage philosophical notions of infinity,such as those developed by Hegel or Levinas. But it does offera very helpful study of the concept within the field of math-ematics, and it will be useful for those working in this area.

Don SchweitzerSt. Andrew’s College

WHY THERE IS SOMETHING RATHER THANNOTHING. By Bede Rundle. New York: Oxford UniversityPress, 2004. Pp. ix + 204. Cloth, $55.00, ISBN 978-0-19-927050-7; paper, $26.95, ISBN 978-0-19-928866-3.

Rundle presents and defends an alternative answer tothe question “why is there something rather than nothing?”Instead of the two common responses, “because God createdit” and “there is no reason,” he argues that God could notcreate the universe because it is impossible for an immate-rial thing to act upon a material thing. There is somethingrather than nothing because, necessarily, something mustexist, and as physical things are the only kind of things thatcan exist independently, they necessarily exist. In this short

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book, Rundle discusses an impressive range of philosophicalissues, from the nature of God to causation, time, and mind.Partly because of this breadth, Rundle’s arguments are oftentoo quick, as is the case with his theory of causation. ForRundle, causation amounts to “an agent, A, [acting] in a waywhich, through the contact it makes with B, culminates in astate of affairs, E.” If true, immaterial things cannot causallyinteract with material things. However, “culminating in” canmean either “is followed by” or “causes.” With the former,we have a regularity theory of causation, which Rundlerejects; with the latter, the account presupposes what is tobe analyzed. Nevertheless, Rundle’s book contains a uniqueview that researchers will want to be familiar with.

Joshua C. ThurowUniversity of Wisconsin–Madison

BREAKING THE SPELL: RELIGION AS ANATURAL PHENOMENON. By Daniel C. Dennett. NewYork: Viking Penguin, 2006. Pp. xvi + 448. $25.95, ISBN978-0-670-03472-7.

Breaking the Spell explores, at a relatively popularlyaccessible level, the “natural”—i.e., evolutionary—origins ofhuman “religious”—i.e., supernaturalistic—convictions andpractices. Following an extended methodological prologome-non, Dennett sketches a reconstruction of religion’sevolutionary development, guided by the question “cuibono?”—who benefits?—which he takes to be central to aresponsible adaptationist research program. The third andfinal section of the book addresses various social and intel-lectual implications of regarding “religion as a natural phe-nomenon,” particularly probing the alleged moral andsocietal benefits of the practice of religion. The book displaysthroughout the enthusiasm and clarity for which Dennett isrightly regarded. Unfortunately, its limitations are verysevere. The author spends an extraordinary amount of spaceand energy responding to highly caricatured potential criti-cisms of his method without quoting any actual interlocu-tors; it is never obvious who he is arguing with. The coresection is almost entirely speculative, and it is not clear howseriously, if at all, the reader is meant to take the variousevolutionary–psychological scenarios proposed. The lastsection displays a profound reluctance to deal with—or toprovide any tools for dealing with, except in terms of adismissively preconceived reductionism—the claims aboutreality made by many religious traditions. Breaking the Spelldoes not finally succeed in giving an intellectually deepaccount either of the scientific study of religion or of existingreligious beliefs and lifeworlds.

Maurice LeeHarvard Divinity School

THE PROBLEM OF GOD IN MODERNPHILOSOPHY. By Leonardo Messinese. Translated byPhilip Larrey. Contemporary Religious Thought. Aurora, CO:Davies Group, 2005. Pp. xxii + 74. $16.00, ISBN 978-1-888570-82-3.

This short work is a translation of the author’s inaugurallecture at the Lateran University. Messinese’s essay pre-sents a succinct, almost programmatic argument on the phi-losophy of religion. For Messinese, modern philosophy iscaught at a crossroads of two streams of thought: those fol-lowing a Cartesian rationalism that highlights the promiseof reason, and those following a more nihilistic view afterNietzsche. In the modern period, Messinese argues that phi-losophy has taken an “anthropological turn,” with humanityreplacing God as the foundation of being. In turn, philosophyhas a new understanding of God as an object—uniquely, themodern period is defined by the fact that God becomes a“problem.” As with any intellectual problem, the question ofGod begins with doubt that the problem can be resolved.After describing the two philosophical trajectories of resolv-ing this dilemma, Messinese presents a possible third wayrooted in an interpretation of Hegel, which sees Hegel’s phi-losophy as “taking away” the problem form of the question.Suggestive but a bit brief, Messinese’s essay should be readin the context of the “turn to religion” in continental philos-ophy. It presumes acquaintance with Hegel and other mainfigures of philosophy and philosophical theology, and thus,Messinese’s essay is of interest to scholars in those areas,as well as to those in philosophy of religion.

Forrest ClingermanOhio Northern University

KIERKEGAARD STUDIES YEARBOOK 2005. Editedby Niels Jørgen Cappelørn and Hermann Deuser incollaboration with K. Brian Söderquist. New York: Walter deGruyter, 2005. Pp. xiii + 521. $235.00, ISBN 978-3-11-018546-9.

Dedicated to Kierkegaard translator and philosopher A.Hannay, this collection of distinguished essays takes themeasure of Kierkegaard’s Concluding Unscientific Postscript,arguably among the most central texts of the Danish writer’soeuvre. Originating at a 2004 conference sponsored by theCopenhagen Søren Kierkegaard Research Centre, the contri-butions cover a wide range of topics. The essays appear inthree sections: part one, the largest, treats the historicalcontext, literary structure, and philosophical or religiouscontent of the book, while part two complicates our judg-ments of Kierkegaard’s impact by covering the reception ofPostscript in Denmark, Germany, and Italy. A future volumewill present the English-language reception. Part threepresents articles on aesthetics, along with D. Cain’s tributeto the brilliant literary-philosophical Kierkegaard interpre-tation of the late R. Poole. How Kierkegaard relates to otherperspectives (the Bible, Grundtvig, E. T. A. Hoffmann, M. deUnamuno, and Zen Buddhism) arises in various of theessays, as well as time-honored themes having to do withthe role of humor, the task of becoming Christian, and therelationship between religion A and religion B. Kierkeg-aard’s strictures against Hegel’s speculative philosophy arestudied as well as the traces of Trendelenburg in shapingthis critique. Several essays are in German; all are

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accompanied by an abstract. The volume, which illustratesthe international reach of Kierkegaard’s influence, is espe-cially appropriate for upper division academic or graduatelibraries.

Richard CrouterCarleton College

THE EXISTENTIALIST LEGACY AND OTHERESSAYS ON PHILOSOPHY AND RELIGION. ByJames Woelfel. Lanham, MD: University Press of America,2006. Pp. vii + 169. $27.00, ISBN 978-0-7618-3409-0.

Woelfel provides a wonderful set of essays written in aclear and forceful style critiquing the existentialist legacyand the study of philosophy and religion. The book isroughly divided into two parts, with a balanced number ofessays on each topic and a transitional essay on the philo-sophical autobiographies of Rosseau, Mill, and Camus for atotal of ten essays. On the existentialist side of the ledger,Woelfel traces existentialism historically, considers existen-tialism and feminism, and existentialism and freedom byway of V. Frankl. Contained in the philosophy and religionset is a perceptive essay on Pascal’s wager, a very timelyessay on “Evolution, Theism and Naturalism,” and a superbcritique of W. Kaufamann. Some of the strongest work comesforth in a fair but withering critique of I. Murdoch. By illu-minating some misinterpretations of existentialism thatMurdoch perpetuated, Woelfel is able to construct a verylucid picture of existentialism by contrast. The essays arevery well written and come from many years of teaching,reading, and writing on the subject at the Universityof Kansas. This work will be at home in any advancedundergraduate- or graduate-level classroom on either sub-ject, and I applaud his clear and balanced approach offeredin each essay.

Eric B. BergMacMurray College

JONATHAN EDWARDS: PHILOSOPHICAL THEO-LOGIAN. Edited by Paul Helm and Oliver D. Crisp.Burlington, VT: Ashgate Publishing Company, 2003.Pp. xvi + 165. $29.95, ISBN 978-0-7546-3163-7.

In this volume suited for scholars, ten essays examinedimensions of Edwards’s contributions to philosophical the-ology. Some explore topics such as the doctrines of hell andcreation, free will, true virtue, divine simplicity, and neopla-tonism, while others discuss the interplay of Edwards’s ideaswith those of J. H. Newman, J. Locke, G. Palamas, and non-Christian religions. The articles are well written and wellresearched by prominent authors but generally do not pro-vide perspectives that differ significantly from previouslypublished materials. The appeal of the book is restricted tothose who specialize in erudite Edwardsean studies.

Rachel S. StahleFirst Presbyterian Church

ON MARRIAGE AND FAMILY: CLASSIC ANDCONTEMPORARY TEXTS. Edited by Matthew Levering.Lanham, MD: Rowan & Littlefield Publishers, 2005.Pp. xviii + 125. $21.95, ISBN 978-0-7425-4249-5.

Marriage and family have become broadly contestedtopics in theological and cultural debates. This volume situ-ates itself amid these debates by offering a splendid intro-duction to classic Roman Catholic texts that span nearly twothousand years. Levering’s introduction offers an intriguingcontrast between the supposedly “Christian” understandingof marriage from M. Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and theenduring witness of Catholic tradition. Among the character-istics that Levering cites from this tradition are indissolubil-ity, hospitality toward children, radical self-giving love, andthe equality of men and women. The volume’s fifteen selec-tions—all of which may be deemed “classic”—draw amply onearly church, patristic, medieval and Reformation periods,with only three texts from the twentieth century. The resultis a solid grounding in the formation of Catholic tradition.Each selection concludes with questions for discussion andreflection, providing an aid for classroom use. Although thevolume takes pains to perceive continuity among the variousperiods, readers miss the contentiousness that has alwayscharacterized Christian discourse about marriage, fromapocalyptic skepticism toward marriage in the early churchto contemporary debates over what kinds of marriages (suchas same-sex unions) the church should or should not bless.Accessible and concise, the text could be used in college orseminary classrooms.

David H. JensenAustin Presbyterian Theological Seminary

TheologyLITURGICAL THEOLOGY: THE CHURCH ASWORSHIPING COMMUNITY. By Simon Chan. Down-ers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Pp. 207. $22.00,ISBN 978-0-8308-2763-3.

Chan, an evangelical professor of systematic theology atTrinity Theological College in Singapore, offers a critique ofevangelical ecclesiology—a tradition he feels is worth correct-ing—and calls on all Evangelical churches to adopt a moreliturgical approach to worship. Labeling the ecclesiology ofmost Evangelical churches as “free” (and as such, possessingan aversion to external or rigid control), Chan suggests thatthe notion of “free worship” in Evangelical churches acrossNorth America hinders, if not stunts, its spiritual growth.For Chan, the absence of a liturgical structure within theSunday church worship schedule distances the averageEvangelical Christian from historic Christianity and fromwhat it means to be part of the Body of Christ. Liturgicalworship must be understood as “embodied worship . . . wor-ship expressed through a certain visible order or structure.”As such, the liturgy must be shaped by what constitutes thechurch as the church and by what it means to be a memberof the historic and global body of Christ. This requires