Includes bibliographical references (pages 253-263) and index

Introduction : the background to a scientific theology -- 1. Prolegomena. The legitimacy of a scientific theology -- The approach to be adopted -- 2. Nature. The construction of nature -- The Christian doctrine of creation -- Implications of a Christian doctrine of creation -- The purpose and place of natural theology -- 3. Reality. Rationality and knowledge in theology and the natural sciences -- Natural theology and the trans-traditional rationality of the Christian tradition -- The foundations of realism in the natural sciences -- Critical realism : engaging with a stratified reality --The encounter with reality : the contours of a scientific theology -- 4. Theory. The legitimacy of theory within a scientific theology -- The representation of reality in a scientific theology -- The place of explanation in a scientific theology -- The place of metaphysics in a scientific theology

This book is a clear, concise guide to Alister McGrath's groundbreaking three-volume work A scientific theology. McGrath himself here summarizes his major project and sketches out its implications for many aspects of Christian doctrine. He then explores all of the major themes of his three-volume work, including the legitimacy of a scientific theology, the purpose and place of natural theology, the foundations of theological realism, the failure of classic foundationalism, the nature of revelation, and the place of metaphysics in theology