A compassionate, helpful, faith-oriented series of meditations on finding peace in a tumultuous world.
This spiritual guide offers advice to readers dealing with anxiety and depression.
In his book, Hutchison relates how his own life was shadowed by stress and anxiety. He was in a loving family with his wife, Kristin, and his daughter, Riley; he was supported by friends and colleagues; and yet he felt overwhelmed and found himself in a hospital emergency room. He was diagnosed with something called “Generalized Anxiety Disorder,” the first of many self-discoveries the author reveals about himself in these pages. He learned that he was an “empath,” highly sensitive to the needs of other people, and from this and other surprises, he created the book’s core philosophy: “It has taken me a lifetime to come to the realization, but I now know that I am not broken but something to celebrate.” In a series of chapters grounded in his own experiences, Hutchison leads readers through reflections on how they can center themselves and find peace in a critical world. The essence of his program is a passionate, personal Christianity. Each chapter includes a section on “supplication” to the Christian God, and spiritual calls and prayers abound throughout the text (“Christ, be with me in places of toxicity”), making the book of limited use to non-Christian readers. But readers sharing Hutchison’s faith, or wanting to, will find him a genial and supportive guide to the process of reshaping routines to discover personal calm and acceptance through a renewed faith—and, as the author repeatedly advises, grounding a healthy worldview in creativity. Christian readers who have been struggling with the demands and harshness of the world will find Hutchison’s calm, self-effacing tone extremely refreshing.
A compassionate, helpful, faith-oriented series of meditations on finding peace in a tumultuous world.Pub Date: April 18, 2023
ISBN: 978-1640656321
Page Count: 224
Publisher: Morehouse Publishing
Review Posted Online: Aug. 10, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
This a book of earlier, philosophical essays concerned with the essential "absurdity" of life and the concept that- to overcome the strong tendency to suicide in every thoughtful man-one must accept life on its own terms with its values of revolt, liberty and passion. A dreary thesis- derived from and distorting the beliefs of the founders of existentialism, Jaspers, Heldegger and Kierkegaard, etc., the point of view seems peculiarly outmoded. It is based on the experience of war and the resistance, liberally laced with Andre Gide's excessive intellectualism. The younger existentialists such as Sartre and Camus, with their gift for the terse novel or intense drama, seem to have omitted from their philosophy all the deep religiosity which permeates the work of the great existentialist thinkers. This contributes to a basic lack of vitality in themselves, in these essays, and ten years after the war Camus seems unaware that the life force has healed old wounds... Largely for avant garde aesthetes and his special coterie.
Pub Date: Sept. 26, 1955
ISBN: 0679733736
Page Count: 228
Publisher: Knopf
Review Posted Online: Sept. 19, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 1, 1955
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.
A compendium of charts, time lines, lists and illustrations to accompany study of the Bible.
This visually appealing resource provides a wide array of illustrative and textually concise references, beginning with three sets of charts covering the Bible as a whole, the Old Testament and the New Testament. These charts cover such topics as biblical weights and measures, feasts and holidays and the 12 disciples. Most of the charts use a variety of illustrative techniques to convey lessons and provide visual interest. A worthwhile example is “How We Got the Bible,” which provides a time line of translation history, comparisons of canons among faiths and portraits of important figures in biblical translation, such as Jerome and John Wycliffe. The book then presents a section of maps, followed by diagrams to conceptualize such structures as Noah’s Ark and Solomon’s Temple. Finally, a section on Christianity, cults and other religions describes key aspects of history and doctrine for certain Christian sects and other faith traditions. Overall, the authors take a traditionalist, conservative approach. For instance, they list Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (the first five books of the Hebrew Bible) without making mention of claims to the contrary. When comparing various Christian sects and world religions, the emphasis is on doctrine and orthodox theology. Some chapters, however, may not completely align with the needs of Catholic and Orthodox churches. But the authors’ leanings are muted enough and do not detract from the work’s usefulness. As a resource, it’s well organized, inviting and visually stimulating. Even the most seasoned reader will learn something while browsing.
Worthwhile reference stuffed with facts and illustrations.Pub Date: Sept. 1, 2005
ISBN: 978-1-5963-6022-8
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2010
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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