Book Review: Screwtape on Creation by Steven Moore

Cosmic Temples, Scientific Wonder, and the Demonic Disdain of Faithful Thinking

What happens when C.S. Lewis’s Screwtape meets modern debates about creation, faith, and science?  Steven Moore’s Screwtape on Creation offers a surprisingly sharp and spiritually enriching answer.  With wit and intrigue, Moore weaves a series of fictional letters that illuminate the real dangers behind our cultural assumptions about the natural world and how easily even Christians can fall for them.  

This book is an unexpected gift:  creative, convicting, and deeply rooted in biblical theology.  Whether you’re new to the idea of creation as cosmic temple or wrestling with the supposed tensions between faith and science, this book is a great way to introduce fiction-reading-friends to the concepts commonly seen in biblical theology!  

A Fresh Take on Ancient Truths

Framed as demonic correspondence (in the spirit of Lewis’s Screwtape Letters), Moore’s book speculates on what the spiritual forces of darkness really hope we believe about creation.  It’s not hard to guess:  that it’s random, meaningless, mechanistic, and divorced from God’s presence.  

But where Screwtape scorns, the reader gains clarity.  Through satire and subversion, Moore unpacks profound biblical themes, like creation’s purpose as God’s temple, humanity’s vocation as image-bearers, and the integration of wonder and worship in our pursuit of knowledge.  It’s theology disguised as fictional temptation... and it’s a very creative way to present deep theology.  

Faith and Science: Not Enemies, But Partners in Awe

One of the most refreshing aspects of this book is how it reframes the supposed war between science and faith.  Rather than reducing the debate to “evolution vs. creation,” Moore goes deeper:  what’s at stake is our view of reality itself.  

He shows how science, when seen rightly, is a way of honoring God’s wisdom and marveling at His handiwork.  The real conflict isn’t between science and Scripture--it’s between reverent curiosity and rebellious autonomy.  Moore’s fictional demon despises any effort to hold science and faith together in humility and praise…hmm, where have we heard that idea before?...

Engaging, Edifying, and Uncomfortably Convicting

Don’t let the format fool you--there’s a lot packed in to such an easy-to-read book.  Screwtape on Creation is filled with insight and pastoral concern.  It’s written for Christians who are eager to grow, think deeply, and resist shallow narratives about the world.  It’s accessible enough for those new to theology, but rich enough for the seasoned reader.  

Some standout themes include:

• Creation as sacred space, not raw material. 
  
  
• The dignity of scientific pursuit when done in humility. 
  
  
• The demonic strategy of distraction and disintegration—subtly disconnecting Christians from a biblical cosmology. 
  
  

In other words, it's about the importance of wonder, awe, and liturgical imagination.

Who Should Read This Book?

If you’ve ever:

• Wondered how to reconcile scientific curiosity with biblical faith, 
  
  
• Wanted a more theologically grounded view of the natural world, 
  
  
• Loved The Screwtape Letters or The Lost World of Genesis One, 
  
  
• Or needed a fresh resource for small group discussion… 
  

…this book belongs on your shelf.  It’s also a great primer for those beginning to explore biblical theology’s insights on creation, temple, and image-bearing.  

Grab a Copy for Your Summer Reading

...Or winter, I guess, if you really want to try to convince us that the earth is a globe.  ;)

Screwtape on Creation is not only a clever homage to C.S. Lewis, but also a call to deeper worship.  Steven Moore has given the church a tool to think theologically about the cosmos, to resist the lies of disenchanted modernity, and to embrace a worldview that sees all of creation as charged with the glory of God. 

It's an invitation to love the Creator more deeply and to see the cosmos not as random or hostile, but as sacred space.


Here is a link to a wonderful conversation with the author:
#147 Screwtape on Creation: Scriptures, Temples, and Peoples (with P. Steve Moore)