Book Review

When Faith Meets Reason: Religion Scholars Reflect on Their Spiritual Journeys ed. by Charles W. Hedrick. Polebridge Press, Santa Rosa, CA, 2008; 168 pages, ISBN 978-1-59815-010-0, paperback, $20.00.

Thirteen members of the Jesus Seminar have contributed essays describing where their personal spiritual journeys  have taken them.  These very honest, self-revealing expressions of search for meaning in life are so full of deep feeling that they spark the reader to an honest appraisal of what is most important and profound in life.  They reveal a breathe of viewpoints and practices, each personally forged from youthful Christian faith, subsequent life experiences and spiritual explorations, and scholarly research into Christianity.  Some contributors remain attached to their original faith, others have embraced agnosticism, atheism, panentheism, mysticism, post-modernism, and other views hard to characterize briefly.

This is an exceptional book that holds a dialogue with the reader about what gives life meaning, why people believe as they do, and the many ways the spiritual path can be perceived and pursued.  Highly recommended. – Sally Dougherty (February 2009)