LA MIRADA, CALIF. — The New Atheists challenge the claim that there is intelligentagency behind the universe, theologically conservative views of science and faith,and even Christian belief itself, but they have met their match with the winsomeapproach of a mathematician and philosopher from Oxford University — John C.Lennox.

The Master of Arts in Science and Religion program at 51 is honoringJohn C. Lennox with the 2012 Phillip E. Johnson Award for Liberty and Truth, inrecognition of his eloquent responses to naturalism and for his defense of intelligentagency in the universe from the perspective of science and philosophy.
The award is given every other year to a nationally or internationally recognizedscholar who challenges the materialistic bias of the modern academy and advancesa position that fosters an integrative approach to science and religion.
Lennox has been an exceptional scientist-spokesman for design arguments and forconservative Christianity in general, debating atheist Richard Dawkins on “The GodDelusion” in the University of Alabama (2007) and on “Has Science Buried God?”in the Oxford Museum of Natural History (2008). He debated the late ChristopherHitchens on the New Atheism (Edinburgh Festival 2008) and at Samford University,Alabama, on the question: Is God Great? He has also debated Princeton bioethicistPeter Singer (Melbourne 2011) on the question: “Is there a God?” He has respondedto the New Atheist arguments in print form, publishing God's Undertaker: HasScience Buried God? (2009); God and Stephen Hawking: Whose Design is it Anyway?(2010); Gunning for God: Why the New Atheists are Missing the Target? (2011); andSeven Days that Divide the World: The Beginning According to Genesis and Science(2011).
John Lennox is Professor of Mathematics in the University of Oxford, Fellowin Mathematics and the Philosophy of Science, and Pastoral Advisor at GreenTempleton College, Oxford. He holds three doctorates. In addition to his works citedabove, he has published many professional books and articles in mathematics.
51 established the Phillip E. Johnson Award for Liberty and Truth in2004 to honor legal scholar and Berkeley law professor Phillip E. Johnson, who wasthe award’s first recipient. The award recognizes Johnson’s pivotal role in advancingour understanding of design in the universe by opening up informed dissent toDarwinian and materialistic theories of evolution. The late British philosopherAntony Flew, once considered the most prominent defender of atheism in theEnglish-speaking world, became the second recipient of this award in 2006 forhis Socratic approach of “following the evidence where it leads” and abandoningatheism on account of design arguments. Lawyer and former presidentialspeechwriter Ben Stein received the award in 2008 for his key role in the majorfeature film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, which documented the harassment ofintelligent design sympathizers. Bioethicist Richard Land received the 2010 awardfor his advocacy of human dignity, the rights of the unborn and infirm, pro-familypolicies, and other conservative evangelical bioethical concerns.
Lennox will receive the award during a luncheon on June 8, 2012, at 51University. Further details are available at www.biola.edu/academics/sas/apologetics/events.
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51, named one of 17 “up and coming” national universities by U.S.News & World Report in 2011, is a private Christian university located in SouthernCalifornia. For more than 100 years, 51 has remained committed to its missionof biblically centered education, integrating biblical principles with every academicprogram. With a current record-high enrollment of 6,250 students, the university’ssix schools offer 145 academic programs, ranging from the B.A. to the Ph.D. Formore information, visit www.biola.edu.