The memoirs of a Russian Orthodox monk in the last days of the Soviet Union. Truly a colorful cast of characters that shows how faith can shine even in the darkest of times.
Book review: "Everyday Saints" by Archimandrite Shevkunov
Book review: “Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others”
What if the faith of others isn't a challenge to the legitimacy of your own, but an invitation for you to be a better Christian, Muslim, Buddhist, etc? In this wonderful book, Barbara Brown outlines how her faith has changed since stepping down from being an Episcopal priest to teach a world religions course.
Book review: Abraham Heschel’s “The Sabbath”
Lewis and Chesterton were both authors that helped me realize that my own religious tradition doesn't have a monopoly on truth. Abraham Heschel (and Rabbi Jonathan Sacks) has helped me expand that sphere a little further into the Jewish tradition as well (if you have any recommendations from other faith traditions, please let me know).... Continue Reading →
Book review: “Destiny Disrupted” by Tamim Ansary
Your knowledge of the Muslim World was probably Disney's Aladdin before 9/11. Then it became limited to the daily news cycle of the "war on terror." How did such a rich and diverse civilization become relegated to the dustbin of history? Ansary does a masterful job of putting modern conflicts in their historical context from Babylon to the Six Day War.
Book review: “Becoming Wise” by Krista Tippett
A beautiful example of the fact that if you sit down and talk with someone from a different background, a different faith tradition, a different culture, you will come to love them and find wisdom there.
Book review: “The Mormon Jesus” by John G. Turner
The Mormon Jesus by John Turner, answering all the questions you've been dying to ask like, was Jesus a polygamist? or did Jesus have abs?
Book review: “The Orthodox Church” by Timothy Ware
Hot take: If I were ever to apostatize, I'd become an Orthodox monk. But seriously, Orthodoxy has so many surprising affinities to the Latter-Day Saint tradition, you'd be surprised.
Book review: “A Secular Age” by Charles Taylor
Most accounts of secularization are pretty flat: the march of clear and virtuous reason against the suffocating faith of the Middle Ages. Charles Taylor gives much more detailed account than these over-simplifications-- and regardless of your background, Taylor's work is an engaging read.
Moral relativism?
I am not a moral relativist. But I am what I will call for lack of a better term an experiential relativist. I believe that everyone's experiences, and thus what can be expected of them at any given moment, is different. I try to avoid any hint that I am somehow on a higher plane... Continue Reading →
