Problem stated: Preamble --; Tale of two Thomases --; Fate of two fathers --; Problem resolved in principle: NOMA defined and defended --; NOMA illustrated --; Coda and segue --; Historical reasons for conflict: Contingent basis for intensity --; Columbus and the flat Earth: example of the fallacy of warfare between science and religion --; Defending NOMA from both sides now: struggle against modern creationism --; Psychological reasons for conflict: Can nature nurture our hopes? --; Nature's cold bath and Darwin's defense of NOMA --; Two false paths of irenics.
Writing with bracing intelligence and elegant clarity, Fould sheds new light on a delimma that has plagued thinking people since the Renaissance. Instead of choosing between science and religion, Gould asks, why not opt for a golden mean that accords dignity and distinction to each realm?