A Place in Creation: Ecological Visions in Science, Religion, and Economics

Ian Wylie Toal is a Martindale-based freelance science writer.

Science, religion, and economics are the sources of ecologically
destructive thinking, according to David Hallman, the author of this
book and the United Church of Canada’s environmental adviser. However,
Hallman also believes that within each of these disciplines are
“exciting discoveries, creative concepts and emerging ecological
models that could help to pull us back from the precipice of
disaster.” These ideas have five common threads: the world is whole
and interconnected; Creation is in a constant state of flux; there is a
limit to needs; humans are both a part of and separate from the rest of
Creation; and the future is “open and dynamic.” The author feels
that while these characteristics are not equally manifested in each
discipline, there is enough impetus there to form the seeds of change.

The bulk of the book examines the above-mentioned ideas. Hallman begins
with a brief history of scientific thought, then looks at specific areas
of physics, astronomy, biology, and chaos. He uses a similar approach
for religion and economics, and concludes on a hopeful note, saying that
the ideas presented will pull us out of “our personal and societal
despair over the ecological crisis.”

Hallman does a good job of making many complicated ideas accessible to
the reader. Though the text has a good flow, I found it to be a bit
repetitious and somewhat exaggerated. As well, Hallman’s analysis of
environmental problems is sometimes weak and clichéd, and his
documentation is occasionally sloppy. Nevertheless, this book allows us
to see the revolution taking place right under our noses.