Allen is a philosopher who taught for many years at Princeton Theological Seminary and is now retired. This is a jewel of a book, and its purpose is captured well in both the title and subtitle. It is indeed an introduction to the essentials of Christian belief, but it is one that deals imaginatively with some of the most basic intellectual challenges facing thoughtful Christians today--especially the problem of evil. It is particularly good in showing how the Bible differs from other philosophical and religious perspectives in its treatment of basic theological questions.

Hunter is a sociologist who teaches at the University of Virginia; he is best known for having invented the idea of the "culture wars" to describe what has been happening in American politics in recent decades. He is also a committed Christian, and in this new book he attempts to make sense sociologically of certain difficulties Christians have been having in our time as they have sought to "change the world." Hunter is critical of the preoccupation with politics that has been characteristic of both the Christian Right and the Christian Left, and he offers a fresh perspective on the strategic issues at stake in the encounter between religion and culture in our time.

McGrath, Alister. Heresy--A History of Defending the Truth (HarperOne, 2009)

We are living in a time when people tend to be suspicious of truth claims about religious matters and intrigued by ideas that have been branded as heresies. This is why works like The Da Vinci Code and the Gospel of Judas have attracted such interest from the public as well as scholars in recent years. But what exactly is the real story about how--and why--certain beliefs came to be recognized as "orthodox" in the development of the Christian religion while others are rejected as heresies? These are the questions Alister McGrath attempts to answer in this new book. A distinguished historian who knows the revelant facts as well as anyone who is also a skilled popularizer, McGrath is ideally equipped to perform this task. His book is essential reading for anyone who is seriously interested in sorting out the issues raised by the likes of Bart Ehrman and Elaine Pagels.

This brief book should be of great interest to those who have enjoyed Robinson's novels. It should be of even greater interest to those who have appreciated her essays on historical and theological subjects. But it is a new departure. In this work she appears as a philosopher who is intent on challenging the philosophical views advanced by those who seek today to discredit religion in the name of science (Richard Dawkins, David Dennett, etc.). Though the book is written with all the grace one would expect of a gifted novelist and rarely gets into technical issues, it is still demanding reading. But it is chock full of provocative ideas and is sure to be much discussed in the circles where the deeper issues raised by contemporary scientific inquiry are being debated.