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Playing God

Science, Religion and the Future of Humanity

Playing God

Science, Religion and the Future of Humanity

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Please allow 2-3 weeks for delivery.

Paperback / softback

£16.99

Publisher: SPCK Publishing
ISBN: 9780281090044
Number of Pages: 208
Published: 16/10/2025
Width: 15.6 cm
Height: 23.4 cm
Could science one day 'defeat death'? What would alien contact mean for humanity? Has medicine finally found a cure for sadness? Will AI replace us? For too long, the 'science and religion' debate has fixated on creation, evolution, cosmology, miracles and quantum theory. But this, argue Nick Spencer and Hannah Waite, is a mistake. Religious belief has survived, and thrived, under many different models of the universe. It was never intended to be a competing explanation for the science of any age. Where science and religion really do come together - sometimes furiously, sometimes fruitfully - is over the status and nature of the human. And that has never been more important than today. Whether it's the quest for immortality or the search for alien life, the treatment of pandemics or 'animal personhood', AI or mental health, abortion or genetic editing, science is making advances that are posing huge questions about what it means to be human, whether we should change ourselves, and how far we should 'play God'. These developments are only going to grow in significance. Playing God brings readers up to date with the latest developments but also draws out their moral and religious dimensions. In so doing, it shows how the future of science and religion is inextricably tied up with the future of humanity.
Preface vii List of abbreviations xii 1 The kingdom of Jesus in the shadow of empire 1 2 The Church between Jesus and Caesar 25 3 Power and the 'powers' in early Christianity: John, Paul and the paradox of biblical politics 40 4 The kingdom of God as vision and vocation 74 5 The Church between submission and subversion 103 6 The Church resisting the powers of today 122 7 Liberalism and love in a time of fear and fragmentation 150 8 Conclusion 174 Index of biblical references and ancient texts 179 Index of names 183

Nick Spencer (Author), Dr Hannah Waite

Nick Spencer (Author) Nick Spencer is Senior Fellow at Theos, the Christian think tank. He is the author of a number of books and reports, including Magisteria (Oneworld, 2023), The Evolution of the West (SPCK, 2016), Atheists: The Origin of the Species (Bloomsbury, 2014) and Darwin and God (SPCK, 2009). Outside of Theos, Nick is Visiting Research Fellow at the Faiths and Civil Society Unit, Goldsmiths, University of London, and a Fellow of the International Society for Science and Religion. Hannah Waite (Author) Hannah Waite is Science and Religion Researcher at Theos, the Christian think tank. Philip Law (In-House Editor) Philip Law is Publishing Director for SPCK and Lion Books. His previous books include The One Hour Bible (SPCK, 2018), A Time to Pray: 365 classic prayers to help you through the year (Lion, 2002) and The SPCK Book of Christian Prayer (SPCK/Crossroad, 1995/ 2009). He is also a contributor to the 6th edition of The Lion Handbook to the Bible (Lion, 2025).