Rating: 
Summary: Well-Intended and sincere, yet philosophically mediocre
Review: Let me state first that I am Christian and not a philosophical materialist by any means. I really appreciate works by religious scientists (John Polkinghorne, for example) who attempt to show that modern science is compatible with, and at times underscores, traditional religious faith. So my review is one of a sympathetic, yet disappointed, reader. I have no doubt that Barr's intentions are noble, and we need more scientists who believe in God to stand-up and defend their views. Since I am not a scientist, I cannot adequately judge Barr's physics, but he seems sound enough. But his philosophical arguments are mediocre at best. He repeatedly makes up quotations that a typical materialist "might say" and then attacks them, even though there is (as he acknowledges) a wealth of materialist literature in philosophy of mind and philosophy of science readily available. When he does quote a materialist philosopher directly, such as W.V. Quine, it is usually short and out of context. These straw-man arguments are quite inappropriate for a scholarly work such as this. Furthermore, Barr attacks materialism as having no rational foundations. What he doesn't mention is that many philosophers adopt materialism (in one of its various forms) as a default position; mainly because the major alternative, dualism, seems far more problematic. Most would acknowledge that there are serious problems with materialism and there is by no means consensus among philosophers of mind (Searle, Kripke, Nagel, etc.). Barr's books in not primarily about the mind, as he points out. It would have been far better for him to leave mind and consciousness out altogether and stick to physics.
Rating: 
Summary: Pure Genious
Review: Mr. Barr is probably one of the most insightful people of the 20-21st century. His book, "Modern Physics and Ancient Faith" is truly astounding. His views are profound and deep, and the way he explains our Religious views, helps us to blend our Faith with our scientific teachings in a way that few people could achieve. Mr. Barr is a truly astounding person with knowlege of one who has seen the world.
Rating:
Summary: Very readable and well argued
Review: Stephen Barr has a gift of writing about complicated philosophical or scientific issues in a clear and well readable style. Not only he has good style he presents deep arguments too. As a pretaste you might read online his excellent article: Retelling the Story of Science, http://www.firstthings.com/ftissues/ft0303/articles/barr.html
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Addition to the Science-Religion Dialogue
Review: Stephen Barr has an exceptionally clear style and a gift for illustrating complex ideas and making them understandable. More significantly, here is a free mind joyfully relating the physics he loves to the faith that sustains him, unconcerned about the reaction of the "professionals." Note: The review of Barr's book by Booklist, is not quite accurate on one point. Barr does not say that Darwin's work has swept away all versions of the Design Argument based on biology. He only says that Darwin somewhat complicated the issue. In fact, while Barr is strongly convinced that evolution happened, he says that he regards it as an "open question" whether natural selection alone can explain the evolution of life, and he attacks the "dogmatism" of many Darwinists on this issue. Moreover, he cites with approval Michael Behe's book, Darwin's Black Box. However, Barr, being a physicist, stays away from biological arguments, except in a few passages, and sticks with his own field, as the title of his book attests.
Rating:
Summary: a unique book
Review: The author combines his expertise in physics (he is a theoretical particle physicist) with an ability to write well and an extensive knowledge of theology and philosophy, both ancient and modern. Peter van Inwagen, a well-known philosopher is quoted on the back cover of the book as saying, "The book is well written, clear, and its philosophical positions well defended." I totally concur. A previous reviewer faults the book for ignoring the position called "compatibilism", i.e. that free will is compatible with determinism. It doesn't. That issue is dealt with in several pages of very lucid discussion. The same reviewer criticizes the book for its discussions of biology, in particular of the "origin of life" question. However, Barr makes it clear that he is deliberately staying away from biological controversies in his book, which (as its title says) is about physics. He hardly mentions the origin of life problem at all, in fact, and his position on it is that one cannot use it to prove any theological conclusions. I have read many science and religion books, but this is the best of the lot. As Prof. Owen Gingerich, a Harvard astrophysicist says on the back cover, "I know of no other book that makes the case against materialism so lucidly, honestly and deftly."
Rating: 
Summary: A sophisticated "God of the Gaps".
Review: The author is obviously very thoughtful, well informed and writes well. He clearly shows what our current limitations in knowledge are especially in the areas of astrophysics and the function of the human mind. Unfortunately in the end he is only arguing a sophisticated "God of the gaps" argument. If science ultimately provides more knowledge about these topics then his arguments will fail.
Rating: 
Summary: There is still no reason to believe in a god!!!
Review: The five plot twists are a very weak argument for religious faith. The observation that the universe is appropriate for life because of the values of fundamental constants of nature is totally circular. Religious faith is dogma and dogma is a dirty word.
Rating:
Summary: A Sound Defense
Review: The title of this book is straight to the point, but it does not by itself convey the whole point of the book. The first paragraph on the jacket flap does a pretty good job, though:
'A considerable amount of public debate and media print has been devoted to the "war between science and religion." In his....book, ....Barr demonstrates that what is really at war with religion is not science itself, but a philosophy called scientific materialism. [This book] argues that the great discoveries of modern physics are more compatible with the central teachings of Christianity and Judaism about God, the cosmos, and the human soul than with the atheistic viewpoint of scientific materialism.'
That is the book promised and that is the book you get.
The arguments presented are, of course, in favor of one side of the debate and contrary to the opposite side. They are, also, consistently honest and fair. They are certainly not exhaustive, but then, this is pretty sparsely typed 300-page book.
Barr never pretends to be absolutely disproving all variants of scientific materialism. Instead, he picks a number of often voiced and frequently heard materialist prejudices (specifically anti-theist or anti-Biblical or anti-Christian prejudices) of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, presents them in their most basic terms, then presents scientific theories and discoveries that appear to confute them. Occasionally he points out as "irony", little points at which the data seems to uphold some separate detail of the Christian theist world-view.
Another reviewer refers disparagingly to "axes to grind." To that I reply that this book is perfectly honest in presenting itself as a substantive but incomplete answer to specific, repeated attacks and criticism from a vocal and numerous bevy of scientists for the past two hundred years. Naturally that task is going to include a good deal of refutation. I would also point out regarding one of said reviewer's preferred books, Stephen Hawking's Brief History of Time - supposedly free of "axes": the preface to that book begins with a caricature of Revelation-based religion per se as the pig-headed assumption of "turtles all the way down". (See Hawking's book.) No axes to grind, indeed. It is precisely to that ugly false note, constantly recurring in the writings of many of the popularizers of science of our time, that Barr's book intelligently and adequately responds.
Finally, I will mention that, though Barr does make an effort to defend the bulk of "Jewish and Christian" belief, his own religion of choice is Catholicism, and it shows. Any reader disinclined to hear and acknowledge the cleverness of great minds like Augustine and Aquinas, or the lucidity of the teachings of the Council of Trent and the First Vatican Council, will find plenty to vex him in the pages of Barr's book. That said, no one who doesn't begin with an anti-Catholic prejudice will find anything that offends or disparages his own religion. Barr comes across as a fair-minded and charitable man, an excellent teacher of physics, and a competent defender in modern times of the surpassing intelligence of intelligent faith in God.
Rating:
Summary: A Fine Book that Covers New Ground
Review: When I finished this book, I went back and began reading it again, something I haven't done in many years. The writing is exceptionally clear and the arguments well stated. I'm not sure of the reason for the casual dismissal of the philosophical arguments in another review; the author mentions that Peter van Inwagen went through them with him, and van Inwagen is no shrinking violet. He discusses, for example, the anthropic principle, Godel's proof and implications of quantum mechanics vis-a-vis the human mind, and concludes that, given our present state of knowledge, theism and an immaterial mind best account for the data. Always cautions in his conclusions, he never claims that any issue is settled, always reminding us that future discoveries may supersede what we presently believe about the physical world. Some of his arguments were completely new to me, despite the fact that I have read extensively on these issues. This is not a rehash of, for example, Penrose. It presents new material in a fresh and interesting way. He doesn't say that science proves the existence of God, or even that in some way it gives evidence for it, rather, he says that the discoveries of the last 70 years or so are consistent with theism and free will, whereas with classical physics one could only hope that some way out could be found. One has been found.
Rating:
Summary: A thoughtful and thought-provoking read
Review: Written by Stephen M. Barr (Professor of Physics, Bartol Research Institute, University of Delaware), Modern Physics And Ancient Faith offers the fascinating postulate that the great discoveries of modern science are closer to the central teachings of Christianity and Judaism about God, than is the atheistic viewpoint of scientific materialism. Using five great discoveries ranging from the Big Bang Theory to Godel's Theorem to cast doubt on the materialist view and emphasize faith in the Judeo-Christian perception of God, Modern Physics And Ancient Faith is a thoughtful and thought-provoking read which is especially recommended for the philosophically inclined who are struggling with Faith/Science issues.
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