James Dew and Paul Gould (D and G) give an introduction to the subject matter of philosophy and philosophy’s relationship to Christianity in an organized and up-to-date analytic fashion. D and G state that human beings have asked certain fundamental questions about life, such as, what is their place in the world, what is the meaning of life given the awareness of their mortality and questions related to the wonder of nature. Acknowledging this sense of wonder that humans experience, the authors reference Plato’s thought that wonder “is where philosophy begins and nowhere else” (1). Using this historical background, D and G state that “philosophy is the pursuit of knowledge and wisdom for the sake of flourishing” (2). An ongoing theme through the book is the practical value of philosophy which brings not only intellectual and moral virtue, but value for Christianity in the areas of evangelism, ministry and spiritual formation into Christ.

The relationship of philosophy to Christianity is found in what D and G call a “convergence” model. More specifically, philosophy and Christianity work in concert, for faith and reason together lead to the truth about God.  For example, the authors contend against atheism philosophically and specifically think Christianity is both true and desirable.

Building on these introductory comments, the book begins withthe subject matter of philosophy as a primary academic discipline. The main categories and subcategories of epistemology and metaphysics are presented in chapters 2 through 11. The authors provide historical background along with rational and balanced arguments related to theories in epistemology and metaphysics. Concurrently, how these topics relate to God and Christianity are carefully explained along with counterarguments that have been put forth by non-Christians. Emphasis is placed on the philosophies of modern and post-modern thinkers, beginning with René Descartes.

The philosophy of religion is presented next in chapters 12 through 15 as a second-order discipline. Here D and G integrate knowledge and insights from epistemology, metaphysics, ethics, logic, science and theology with questions of a religious nature. The religious questions of the existence of God, the problem of evil, hiddenness of God, divine interactions of miracles and prayer, and the possibility of life after death are addressed. Here D and G argue for God as personal, all-good, immensely knowledgeable, immensely powerful, necessary, eternal, creator and sustainer of all distinct reality (177). They then explore other religious questions, using the same method of argument/counterargument.

The last two chapters of the book are devoted to ethics, both meta-ethics and normative ethics, because “discussions on moral theory have a clear connection to many of the same concerns addressed by the Christian faith” (254). The various approaches to moral systems of normative ethics are well described, including contemporary virtue ethics.

This book is an excellent segue to the study of Christian theology. The basics of philosophy are well presented, and the richly nuanced arguments clearly show the author’s depth of knowledge and understanding of the subject matter. The text is well footnoted, and the authors provide a glossary of terms, author and subject indices,and an extensive bibliography. Students of theology should have a working knowledge of philosophy and its relationship to Christianity. This book serves that purpose well.