This month, I’d like to experiment with a reading group. It will have two main components:
- Weekly posts on interesting points brought up by the book and a concluding, in-depth review. The weekly posts would give any of you reading the book to be involved in a dialogue about the book. I hope that I might be able to cross link with the bloggers among you who might like to post on the reading or on spin-off topics.
- There will also be a non-virtual, face-to-face discussion about the book towards the end of the month. The venue will likely be located somewhere in the OC/LA borderlands. I forsee a heated, intellectual conversation possibly enhanced by good food and adult beverages.
Here are the books that I nominate for this month’s reading. They all reflect some public aspect of religion. I hope that you can help us narrow it down to one:
When Religion becomes Evil: Five Warning Signs, by Charles Kimball. It’s on the list partly for the provocative, timely title. It’s also listed as Publishers Weekly”s “Top Religion Book of 2002.” To whet your appetite, the first two warning signs are “Absolute Truth Claims” and “Blind Obedience.” It gets better.
The God Factor: Inside the Spiritual Lives of Public People, by Cathleen Falsani. Falsani is Chicago Sun-Times religion writer, and when I grow up, I want to be just liker her. This book contains a series of candid interviews with Hugh Hefner, Anne Rice, Barack Obama, annie Lennox, Jeffrey Sachs, Bono, David Lynch, Seamus Heaney, Melissa Etheridge and others about their spiritual lives. That’s right. That Hugh Hefner.
The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason, by Sam Harris. This book and its dynamic author have been getting a lot of recognition in both audio and print media recently. Of all of this books, this one is perhaps the most critical of religion as a whole, but I’m curious as to why big media outlets are interested in it (most recently Newsweek).
American Theocracy: The Peril and Politics of Radical Religion, Oil, and Borrowed Money in the 21st Century, by Kevin Phillips. I started reading a bit of this and it’s already transformed how I look at American politics, our oil dependency and our sad little future. Kevin Phillips is a long term Republican policy advisor who predicted the rise of the Religious Right a decade or two in advance, but who now argues against the policies and partnerships of the current administration.
Rational Mysticism: Spirituality Meets Science in the Search for Enlightenment, by John Horgan. I’ve read this book once, a couple of years ago and loved it. A Scientific American writer decides to explore options for accessing other worlds. He tries shamanic concoctions, interviews spirituality gurus, and takes a close look at medical research being done on spirituality.
Here’s how the voting will work: please vote by commenting below. In each comment, pick a first choice and a second choice. You are welcome to mention why you think it’s a better pick. Let me know if you are going to try to make it to the book group (which will probably happen on a weekend evening later this month, or early October). Let me know if you will consider blogging about the book on your own site. The selections by those planning to discuss it in person will be weighed a little heavier than those who plan to write about it on their blogs, and theirs will be weighted a bit more more than those who plan mainly to follow along on mindonfire–but don’t let that hold you back! What sounds the most interesting to you?
