A Modern Relation of Theology and Science Assisted by Emergence and Kenosis

How should we attempt to understand the relationship between theology and science in the twenty-first century? In this book, I will attempt to answer this question by examining several previous attempts to classify this relationship. I also develop my personal view of the relation, thereafter discussing some Catholic contributions to this project, and then revisit some of my previously published material, highlighting the role of panentheism therein, and noting an emergent implication from the literature: the resultant possibilities for God--an implication that creates space for a broadly relational perspective of the process of emergence. These movements allow me to argue that kenosis and emergence can add to the discussion of understanding the theology and science relationship. Herein, I advocate a monistic process-based view of the overlapping relationship between theology and science.

Dr. Bradford L. McCall holds a B.S. in Biology (2000), four Master's in Religion or Philosophy (2005)-M.Div. from Asbury Theological Seminary; 2011-MA in Church History and Doctrine from Regent University [Thesis: Charles Sanders Peirce, Theology, & Teleology: A (Late-)Modern Synthesis]; 2017-MA in Systematic Philosophy from Holy Apostles College and Seminary [Thesis: A Modern Relation of Science & Theology Assisted by the Evolutionary Developmental Philosophy of Peirce]; 2020-MA in Religious Studies from Claremont School of Theology [awarded on the successful passage of the Comprehensive Exams Areas delineated below]), and a PhD in Comparative Theology from Claremont School of Theology in Claremont, CA, wherein his interdisciplinary dissertation was entitled Contingency and Divine Activity: Toward A Contemporary Conception of Divine Involvement in an Evolutionary World, which was successfully defended 22 September, 2021. His Doktor vater & dissertation chair was the distinguished Dr. Philip Clayton (Claremont School of Theology). The other members of his committee were similarly distinguished in their areas of expertise: Dr. Ingolf U. Dalferth (Claremont Graduate University) and Dr. Roland Faber (Claremont School of Theology). McCall has written nearly 40 peer-reviewed Journal Articles and has written or is in the process of writing nearly a dozen books, including: A Modern Relation of Theology and Science Assisted by Emergence and Kenosis (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2018); as ed. God and Gravity: A Philip Clayton Reader on Science and Theology with an Autobiographical Chapter by Philip Clayton (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2018); Evolution: Secular or Sacred? (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2020); The God of Chance & Purpose: Divine Involvement in a Secular Evolutionary World (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2022); Macroevolution, Contingency and Divine Activity: Divine Involvement Through Uncontrolling, Amorepotent Love in an Evolutionary World (Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2023); as ed., Reading Ruse: Michael Ruse on Darwinism, Science, & Faith, with an Autobiographical Chapter by Michael Ruse (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 10/2024); Theological Briefs: Triangulating Religion, Belief, & Faith in the 21st Century (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2024); Theological Briefs: The Advent of Grace (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2025); and as ed., Ruminating on Ruse: Key Themes in the Evolutionary Naturalism of Michael Ruse (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2025); Theological Briefs: A Christian Natural Theology of Chance & Contingency--Towards An Evolutionary Telos for Late-Modern Theology (Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, 2025): Under Review; as ed., The Peacocke's Tale: An Arthur R. Peacocke Reader on Science & Faith, with a Foreword by Philip Clayton (Eugene, OR: Cascade, 2026): Under Review.