A simultaneously grounded and inspiring approach to appreciating the benefits of both science and religion.
A holistic exploration of spiritual and religious practices through a scientific lens.
In this slim but dense and well-reasoned book, biologist Sheldrake (Science Set Free: 10 Paths to New Discovery, 2012, etc.) delves into seven common spiritual practices and relates the many healthy and transformative effects that can be attributed to each. The author offers a unique perspective as a well-regarded scientist with a profoundly grounded spiritual awareness. In the preface, he shares his particular path to enlightenment, from the secular and atheistic stance of his early scientific education to his eventual spiritual awakening through early experience with transcendental meditation and eventual travel to India, as well as his study of Hindu philosophy and Christian mysticism. Through all his studies, he has come to realize that “the old-fashioned opposition between science and religion is a false dichotomy. Open-minded scientific studies enhance our understanding of spiritual and religious practices.” Sheldrake devotes separate chapters to meditation; the flow of gratitude; connecting with nature; relating to plants; rituals and their relation to the past; singing, chanting, and the power of music; and pilgrimage and holy places. Throughout, he displays his vast knowledge of religious history and a broad range of scientific research, and he closes each chapter with at least two examples for practical applications. By the concluding chapter, the author establishes further reasons for maintaining a balanced awareness of both scientific and spiritual studies, and he feels that scientism extremists are imposing an unjustly rigid worldview. “I was disillusioned when I found that some people have made science into a kind of religion and are often exceptionally dogmatic,” he writes. “They accept the scientific worldview on faith, impressed by the authority and prestige of scientists, and imagine that they have arrived at this worldview by their own freethinking. I still believe in the ideal of open-minded science….In my own experience, believers in scientism are more dogmatic that most Christians.”
A simultaneously grounded and inspiring approach to appreciating the benefits of both science and religion.Pub Date: Aug. 28, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-64009-117-7
Page Count: 240
Publisher: Counterpoint
Review Posted Online: May 23, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2018
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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