There are many options for Christian and homeschool high school level science curricula in biology, chemistry and physics, but resources for astronomy are harder to find. Since my daughter is fascinated by astronomy, we were both excited to get a look at the newly published, The Crossroads of Science and Faith: Astronomy Through a Christian Worldview text. The set includes a full color paperback 528 page student book ($75), and a separate answer book ($13.90).

The Crossroads of Science and Faith: Astronomy Through a Christian Worldview actually has two parts. Part One provides an introduction to science and faith issues. These five chapters teach the student about worldviews and about the connections between science and faith. I found this to be a unique way to begin a science text. As explained in the introduction, the authors hope to prepare students for education in a secular university setting by demonstrating how faith and scientific study are compatible, despite what they may hear from secular sources. They also wish to help them understand that the same evidence can be interpreted differently depending upon the worldview of the scientist.

Part Two, consisting of 24 chapters, covers the primary topic of astronomy, from the history of astronomy to our solar system, galaxies, telescopes and light, and the births, lives, and deaths of stars. The information provided seems very complete and rigorous for a high school level course.

Scattered throughout the book are biographical sketches and interviews of contemporary Christian scientists, demonstrating to the reader that scientific study and faith are not incompatible. I especially liked the appendices to the text which describe the dating methods, different approaches to interpreting the Genesis creation account, the different origin beliefs, and theories explaining the Bethlehem star.

The text is beautifully illustrated with hundreds of photos of the skies and objects in space, drawings, and diagrams. (I think this was my daughter’s favorite part of the book because she loves pictures of the night sky.) Each chapter is followed by review exercises. A few of these are multiple choice, but most require short answers, mathematical calculations, drawings, paragraph-length answers, or further research, requiring the student to fully understand and explain the information. The exercises in Part One are especially lengthy. In fact, there are sometimes more pages of questions than pages of text, ensuring that the student is really able to apply the principles of worldview and faith to his or her own life.

The Crossroads of Science and Faith: Astronomy Through a Christian Worldview is an appealing and solid high school level course. I suspect that the information covered is comparable to an introductory college level course. The end-of chapter questions require high level thinking skills and both mastery and application of the material. While tests are not included in this course, the chapter exercises could be used as test material. My daughter is thoroughly enjoying this engaging course and I believe it is excellent college preparatory material, both for the faith and worldview content and the scientific content.

-Product review by Debbie Lott, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, April, 2017