Welcome to the Wisdom of the World And Its Meaning for You: Universal Spiritual Insights Distilled from Five Religious Traditions
by Joan Chittister, Joan Chittister (Author)
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"Certain questions are common to all of us as human beings. Why was I born? What's important in life? How do I know the right thing to do? What does it mean to 'make a difference'? What's wrong with me -- why can't I change? Such questions are so deeply human that they transcend time and place, religions and cultures. In this inviting book Joan Chittister presents the insights of others from different cultures throughout history who have grappled with the same kinds of life questions that show more plague us here and now. Through stories and wisdom literature from major religious traditions -- Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam -- Chittister highlights practical, universal truths and deftly shows how each spiritual tradition brings a special gift to the art of living a meaningful, spiritually aware life. A rich exploration of spirituality, Welcome to the Wisdom of the World addresses some of our most challenging issues -- ambition, security, romance, abandonment, failure, and more -- acknowledging the truth we can find in the wisdom of our human past and the connections we can make through our differences. This is a book for anyone who wants to grow spiritually and to become more fully human"--Publisher's web site. show lessTags
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Member Reviews
I found this book very hard going -- not gracefully written, too general to make its points effectively. And some of it is just plain hogwash ("Each of the great spiritual traditions - Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity and Islam -- has multiple variations of one basic message. They spring from the same kind of spiritual impulse and seek the same kinds of spiritual things." p. 167). The best thing about the book is the stories from the traditions (not the scriptures, notice) of the religions that illustrate themes that interest her. I noticed all the Islmaic stories the author offers are Sufi, which hardly represents mainline Islam. Also, all the stories in the Christian tradition are from the Desert Fathers. She really doesn't show more give any knowledgable definition or understanding of the world religions -- in the Hinduism summation at the end, she doesn't include a single date. She seems to be looking for feel good answers to universal questions, but that isn't really what any of the world religions are primarily about. show less
I enjoyed this look of great questions through the lens of different spiritual practices. We are reading this for Amesbury MM book club, and I look forward to how this might inspire us to tell our own stories. I am a fan of Joan Chittister.
universal spiritual insights
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Nonfiction
41 works; 1 member
Author Information
146+ Works 7,766 Members
Joan Chittister is an internationally known author and lecturer, and the executive director of Benetvision, a resource and research center for contemporary spirituality. She is past president of the Conference of American Benedictine Processes and the Leadership Conference of Women Religious. She currently serves as co-chair of the Global Peace show more Initiative of Women. Her many books include the bestseller The Gift of Years. She lives in Erie, Pennsylvania. show less
Common Knowledge
- Original publication date
- 2007-07-24
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Statistics
- Members
- 181
- Popularity
- 181,575
- Reviews
- 3
- Rating
- (3.78)
- Languages
- English, Portuguese
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 2
