Witham, Larry 1952–

(Larry A. Witham)

PERSONAL:

Born in 1952; married Kazui Yamamoto. Education: San Jose State University, B.A., 1974.

ADDRESSES:

Home—MD.

CAREER:

Journalist and author. Former reporter for the Washington Times.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Cornell Award, Religion Newswriters' Association; Templeton Foundation award for articles on science and religion; three-time recipient of the Wilbur Award, Religion Communicators Council, including 2000, for "Seeking the Spirit: America's Churches in the 21st Century," and 2002, for "Pulpits in Peril: The Future of America's Clergy"; Society of Professional Journalists award; Who Shall Lead Them? The Future of Ministry in America was named Best Book of 2006 by the Academy of Parish Clergy.

WRITINGS:

Rodzianko: An Orthodox Journey from Revolution to Millennium, 1917-1988, University Press of America (Lanham, MD), 1991.

The Negev Project: A Novel, Meridian Books (College Park, MD), 1994.

Dark Blossom: A Novel of East and West, Meridian Books (Burtonsville, MD), 1997.

(As Larry A. Witham) Where Darwin Meets the Bible: Creationists and Evolutionists in America, Oxford University Press (New York, NY), 2002.

By Design: Science and the Search for God, Encounter Books (San Francisco, CA), 2003.

The Measure of God: Our Century-long Struggle to Reconcile Science and Religion, HarperSanFrancisco (San Francisco, CA), 2005.

(As Larry A. Witham) Who Shall Lead Them? The Future of Ministry in America, Oxford University Press (New York, NY), 2005.

A City upon a Hill: How Sermons Changed the Course of American History, HarperOne (New York, NY), 2007.

Also author of audiobook Curran v. Catholic University: A Study of Authority and Freedom in Conflict, 1991. Contributor to periodicals, including Science & Spirit, Christian Century, Nation, Nature, Scientific American, and Beliefnet online.

SIDELIGHTS:

Journalist Larry Witham is best known for his writings on science and religion. In his Where Darwin Meets the Bible: Creationists and Evolutionists in America, Witham examines the age-old debate between creationists and evolutionists as to the origin of human beings. Witham also introduces a third theory, intelligent design, and explains how the lines between science and religion are often indistinct. In compiling the book, Witham conducted interviews with major names on all sides of the debate in an attempt to offer a neutral analysis of all theories, though he does predict that intelligent design will eventually overtake evolution as the most widely accepted scientific theory. The author also provides a wealth of biographical information on each of the debate's key players.

In a review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible for the Christian Century, religion and philosophy teacher Greg Peterson expressed the belief that Witham "brings together an impressive breadth of material" in the book, though Peterson also suggested that the author gives "little attention to what makes the intelligent design movement distinct from the earlier creation-science." However, Peterson ultimately acknowledged that "the book's most valuable contribution … is its detailed recording of the see-saw battle over the teaching and public funding of evolutionary and creationist viewpoints." Science contributor Kenneth R. Miller rendered the book "a virtual playbill that describes the principal actors in this modern passion play." Miller continued: "Any scientist tempted to believe that the major figures in the anti-evolution movement are half-hearted, insincere, or simply opportunistic in their assault against mainstream science would do well to read this book." A Publishers Weekly contributor commented on the author's "impeccable reportage, his erudite analysis, and his ability to synthesize complex and nuanced strains of thought," calling the book an "invaluable roadmap" to this controversy.

Witham's next book is a follow-up to Where Darwin Meets the Bible. By Design: Science and the Search for God further explores the relationship between intelligent design and religion. Witham explains how science and religion merge to form what has become known as "creation science." World and I contributor Gene Levinson felt that in this book, Witham "does an excellent job of describing the spectrum of beliefs over a broad range of subjects in nonjudgmental terms," and he "makes insightful connections between diverse specialties and disciplines and provides much-needed perspective." A Publishers Weekly contributor remarked: "Witham adeptly charts the course of the science and religion dialogue as the participants continue to search for common ground."

Near the end of the nineteenth century, a wealthy Scottish judge, Lord Gifford, donated his fortune to four Scottish universities in order to initiate a lecture series that would address the promotion and advancement of natural theology. Witham traces the history of this lecture series, the Gifford Lectures, in his The Measure of God: Our Century-long Struggle to Reconcile Science and Religion. The book includes lecture summaries addressing topics in the fields of theology, psychology, sociology, philosophy, and history; profiles of some of the series's most renowned presenters; and synopses of historical and social ideas that have contributed to the advancement of theology. "Witham includes an impressive range of materials for a single volume," wrote a contributor to Publishers Weekly, who also termed the book "deeply researched and factually rich." In a Library Journal review, Charles Seymour remarked that The Measure of God is "commendable for its engaging style, thorough research, and neutral stance."

Who Shall Lead Them? The Future of Ministry in America, considers some issues faced by modern Catholic and Protestant clergy. In it Witham attempts to discover whether American clergy are in crisis, or if a readjustment of clerical roles is necessary in changing times. Witham examines the effect of modern issues on the clergy, such as the sex-abuse scandals in the Catholic Church, the introduction of homosexuals into the ministry, the evolution of the role of women in the ministry, the waning of resources that has made it necessary for some clerics to seek second jobs, and other challenging issues faced by the modern ministry. Witham draws on recent religious studies to make his points and ponders how the ministry of the future will overcome these problems. In the Wilson Quarterly, reviewer Michele Dillon wrote that with this book, Witham "succeed[s] in providing a comprehensive, historically informed, and heavily empirical (if somewhat breathless) overview of the major concerns" surrounding the ministry of the new millennium. Expressing a similar opinion of the book, Library Journal contributor Augustine J. Curley described Who Shall Lead Them? as "insightful" and "valuable," stating that Witham "offers a balanced and nuanced view of several key aspects of contemporary ministry."

The main title of Witham's A City upon a Hill: How Sermons Changed the Course of American History is the name of a famous sermon delivered by John Winthrop, one of the many sermons featured in this volume. Others include Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, as well as sermons of Henry Ward Beecher, Billy Graham, Fulton J. Sheen, and Norman Vincent Peale. Witham discusses the impact of the contemporary sermon on such issues as civil rights, religious revivals, and politics. A Publishers Weekly reviewer noted that Witham gives appropriate space to Roman Catholic, female, black, and evangelical preachers, as well as to mainstream Protestant white males. Booklist contributor June Sawyers described A City upon a Hill as being a "highly readable history of the American sermon."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

America, September 8, 2003, Howard J. Van Till, review of By Design: Science and the Search for God, p. 24.

Booklist, March 15, 2003, Bryce Christensen, review of By Design, p. 1257; June 1, 2007, June Sawyers, review of A City upon a Hill: How Sermons Changed the Course of American History, p. 7.

Christian Century, February 24, 2004, Greg Peterson, review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible: Creationists and Evolutionists in America, p. 53; October 4, 2005, J. Nelson Kraybill, review of Who Shall Lead Them? The Future of Ministry in America, p. 34.

Journal of Religion, April, 2004, Ronald L. Numbers, review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible, p. 291.

Library Journal, November 1, 2002, H. James Birx, review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible, p. 126; June 1, 2005, Augustine J. Curley, review of Who Shall Lead Them?, p. 140; July 1, 2005, Charles Seymour, review of The Measure of God: Our Century-long Struggle to Reconcile Science and Religion, p. 88.

Publishers Weekly, October 21, 2002, review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible, p. 65; March 10, 2003, review of By Design, p. 69; May 2, 2005, review of Who Shall Lead Them?, p. 192; July 11, 2005, review of The Measure of God, p. 86; April 23, 2007, review of A City upon a Hill, p. 46.

Science, January 31, 2003, Kenneth R. Miller, review of Where Darwin Meets the Bible, p. 664.

Wilson Quarterly, autumn, 2005, Michele Dillon, review of Who Shall Lead Them?, p. 125.

World and I, October, 2003, Gene Levinson, review of By Design, p. 226.

ONLINE

Larry Witham Home Page,http://www.larrywitham.com (January 21, 2008).

Oxford University Press Web site,http://www.oup.com/ (January 21, 2006), profile.