"This book is the most nuanced discussion of Darwin’s religious views that I have seen. At a time when studies of Darwin’s ideas and even devotion to Darwin are at a high point, this particular work calmly, methodically, insightfully and without polemic treats Darwin’s religious sensibilities in such a way as to overcome countless biases and inaccuracies in many previous discussions. Its lucid style and readability make it an attractive book for both undergraduate and graduate students, but also for a very wide readership beyond the academy." - John F. Haught, Senior Fellow, Science & Religion, Georgetown University, USA
"In this masterful overview, the author helpfully shifts the discussion about Darwin and religion away from Darwin’s ‘loss of faith’ to a more nuanced picture of Darwin as the theist/deist/agnostic who continued to engage with religion, indeed intellectually struggled over religion, until his dying day. The book subverts the polarised narratives of the ‘new atheists’ and provides instead a more relevant text for the contemporary interaction between science and religion." - Denis Alexander, Emeritus Director, The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion, St. Edmunds College, University of Cambridge, UK
"A thoughtful and comprehensive treatment of Charles Darwin’s thinking about religion, brought vividly to life by a warm and genuine sympathy for the people and their ideas. It is a book to be read both by the expert and the general reader." - Michael Ruse, Lucyle T. Werkmeister Professor of Philosophy, Director of the Program in the History and Philosophy of Science, Florida State University, USA
"J. David Pleins sets out to do one thing, and he does it very well. He presents, and discusses, Charles Darwin's thought about God and religion. This goes far further than addressing the chestnut whether, and at what stage, Darwin was a Christian believer, a more general theist, an agnostic, or an atheist, although that question is discussed carefully. Indeed, like the rest of the book, it is addressed with meticulous reference to primary texts: principally letters and notebooks, supplemented by accounts of conversations documented by others. […] A sensible plea for contemporary debates to be as informed and thoughtful as Darwin's own. […] Darwin has more to offer contemporary religious thought than even his magisterial work on physical evolution would suggest." - The Revd. Dr. Andrew Davison, Westcott House, Cambridge, UK., The Church Times
"Pleins (Santa Clara Univ.) provides a brief but thoroughly documented study of Darwin's lifelong engagement with religious belief. The title is somewhat misleading. This is not a book about an "evolving Cod" (a theological claim); instead, as the subtitle suggests, it is a study of Darwin's own developing insights into the evolution of human religion. As described by Pleins, Darwin developed a compelling case in The Descent of Man for the evolution of religion and morality, but struggled for the rest of his life with the possible consequences of that discovery: atheism, agnosticism, or a new kind of theism? In his conclusion, Pleins recommends the example of Darwin's critical reflection in contrast to "the fuming of the fundamentalists and the posturing of the New Atheists," and hopes that this approach can point the way to a deeper understanding of the relation between religion and science. Since the author's 11 3 pages of text are backed up with 34 pages of notes and an additional 1 3-page bibliography, this book provides not just a challenging argument, but also a wide range of references for anyone wishing to look further into the topic. Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division undergraduates and above." — C. D. Kay, Wofford College, CHOICE
"This is a marvelous book on Darwin and religion." – Keith Stewart Thomson, Oxford University, Reports of the National Center for Science Education
"Given the flurry of activity and publications in 2009 coinciding with the bicentenary of Charles Darwin’s birth and the sesquicentennial of the publication of the Origin of Species, it could be supposed that there would be little more to say about Darwin’s contemporary significance. The book proves that supposition wrong. […] Drawing primarily on Darwin’s Descent of Man, this book argues, convincingly in my view, that more can be said about Darwin’s search for explanation with respect to religious beliefs. […] What is striking, however, about Pleins’s account is the extent to which historical details are used to inform his position. This makes for a lively and readable account that will be attractive in a teaching context. […] [T]his book needs to be read and widely appreciated in both scholarly and pedagogical contexts." – Celia Deane-Drummond, University of Notre Dame, Horizons
"For a thoroughly researched and readable account of Darwin’s thinking about religion, this is a book that could hardly be bettered. It is authoritatively and attractively written. Darwin scholars will be familiar with most of the material, but it is recast with original insight and to good effect. [...] Darwin once said that to gain the approbation of one’s fellow men is the 'highest pleasure on this earth'. On the strength of this book, it is a pleasure that Professor Pleins should certainly enjoy."-John Hedley Brooke, UK Science and Religion Forum
