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Title: The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet
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Manufacturer: Ignatius Press
List Price: $16.95
Our Price: $8.99
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| The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet by Ignatius Press reviewing Evidential Power of Beauty | I found Thomas Dubay's book on the subject of beauty quite interesting,but also inspiring.The chapters dealing with the wonders of the universe,the Macromarvels,the Midimarvels,and the Micromarvels are a must read for everyone.
I did find the book a hard read.It is a book that contains so much information,scientific or otherwise,that it can be a quite a task to plough through it.Not a book at bedtime.It is one of those books that you have to read over again to get further meaning from it.Thomas Dubay is a very deep thinker,so as a reader it helps to be somewhat similiar in mind to digest the contents. | | The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet by Ignatius Press awesome! | | I've just began reading this book and couldn't put it down. As an artist, i think it is important to know the principles of beauty. I also watch the show of Fr. Dubay based on the book in EWTN. I recommend this book to anyone fascinated about Beauty, that ultimately points to its Divine Author. :) | | The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet by Ignatius Press A splendid book, with two glaring errors... | ...thus the missing two stars.
I made a private retreat at Christ in the Desert Monastery in the high desert of New Mexico, in the Santa Fe National "Forest", just recently, and found this book on the bookshelf in the common room of the guest quarters. Having read Happy Are You Poor by Dubay, and emphatically enjoying it, I decided to read it during my stay.
The books title states enough about the content, so I won't spend much time talking about the different parts. I'll just say that he philosophically talks about beauty, and the impact that it has on people, and that beauty simply cannot be accidental, as the beautiful things that we as humans make are intentional. He then spends ample time going through the minutest details of anything from stars to hummingbirds, from orchids to cells, demonstrating that each is "perfect according to its own kind."
The problem that I first noticed, was how horribly this book is punctuated. Either Dubay does not know how to use a comma, or his editor doesn't. Obviously, I don't know which it is. All I know, is that it took me longer to read this book than a typical one of comparable length would have, as I consistently read sentences, finishing them by saying, "What in the world is he trying to say?" After reading it over again, I would notice several sections of the sentence where a comma is needed, to structure the flow of the reading. If I had the book on me, I would supply a few examples, but it is nestled on a bookshelf amongst a plethora of other books at the monastery, and I am back home in Georgia.
The other mistake, is the much-too-broad stroke that he paints for rock music. He quotes at least two sources that I can recall, Frank Sinatra and Allan Bloom, stating that rock music is formless, and thus ugly. The problem with this is not that some rock music is hideous, but that he doesn't specify as to what he means when he says "rock music". Rock music, like most musical genres, is extremely broad. I have always considered jazz and blues as being a branch of rock. Surely some jazz and blues is very well structured, as Dubay even refers to some of it as being beautiful. Although much of the lyrical content of classic rock is bankrupt, much of the music is anything but unstructured, demonstrating a certain element of the classical. Again, some of it can simply be described as noise. However, the same is true of some classical music, which Dubay praises again and again in this book. Just because music has violins and pianos doesn't make it beautiful. It requires structure, something which some rock music definitely possesses. The fact of the matter, I think, is that Dubay isn't qualified to comment on rock music as a whole (and possibly not music as a whole, in general); thus, the majority of that section (pages 86-88, if I remember correctly) is quotes from others (the aforementioned Bloom and Sinatra).
Apart from these two errors, I did really enjoy the book, and find myself uplifted by it. I was also blessed to be in the barrenly beautiful desert while reading it! What a wonderfully beautiful backdrop to read a book on beauty!
So, if Dubay writes anymore books, I emphatically recommend that he either learn how to use a comma, or hire an editor who does; and, if ever again he dabbles in commenting on rock music, he needs to specify what he means by "rock music", and only comment on things which he is qualified to comment on. | | The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet by Ignatius Press Evidential Power of Beauty | | Great book--doesn't completely overcome my doubts about God, but comes close. Everyone should read the chapters on the maxi, midi, and mini marvels we come in contact with every day. | | The Evidential Power of Beauty: Science and Theology Meet by Ignatius Press Ten Stars for Dubay | | I can't say enough about this book to do it real justice. Evidential Power of Beauty has not only opened my eyes, mind, and senses to creation on a deeper level, but it has intensified my hunger and wonder that is often stifled and desensitized in American pop culture. Though one reviewer commented on Dubay's "attack" on rock and roll, I don't believe it was an attack at all. Quite the opposite. Dubay simply made a point about why certain types of music produced harsh, often filthy, shallow repetitive melodies, while others, such as Mozart, produced a more complicated, pleasing piece that required the best of the mathematical beauty and design he discusses throughout the book. It was just another comparison of the beauty of complicated design versus simplistic noise. However,I can give Dubay grace in that area, as I must allow for his lack of knowledge for a band such as YES (very complicated, very beautiful pieces of music)often categorized as "rock." (Though quite a different caliber than,say,Ozzy Osbourne.)I give Dubay a break on that facet of the book. I am not a scientist,a theologian, or a Catholic. You don't have to be to enjoy this book immensely and even learn a thing or two about something you probably never thought twice about--for example,water. Dubay takes time to explore the "givens" in our world that are so casually seen as "miraculous accidents." His marvelous prose and fire for God lights every page. The underlying push for even beginning to ponder God's mystery,awe, and love is, as Dubay quoted, the "ability to have the humility to sit at the foot of a dandelion." The book is simply a masterful work of art, a lovely tour of how theology and science merge together at the point of Beauty. Though both disciplines have opposite starting points, they lead to many of the same conclusions about our Universe. Buy or borrow this book, find a comfortable chair, and take your time absorbing the "evidential beauty" in this book. |
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