Three recent books take seriously the story science tells us about where we are and how we got here on Earth. NCR columnist Rich Heffern talks with the authors to discuss the implications for religion of modern science's account of an unimaginably vast universe of 500 billion galaxies and the evolution of humans that took place over millions of years.

Michael Dowd and his wife, Connie Barlow, who is a science writer, call themselves "evolution's evangelists." They travel the country giving talks, workshops and retreats on the religious implications of the theory of evolution. Devoted to exploring ways of finding unity between science and faith, "evolution evangelist" Michael Dowd says Darwin 's idea is God's gift to theology, and that this evolution can be integrated with religion in holy and meaningful ways.

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