The Illusion of God's Presence

The Illusion of God's Presence
Author: John C. Wathey
Publisher: Prometheus Books
Total Pages: 464
Release: 2016
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1633880745

An essential feature of religious experience across many cultures is the intuitive feeling of God's presence. More than any rituals or doctrines, it is this experience that anchors religious faith, yet it has been largely ignored in the scientific literature on religion.Starting with a vivid narrative account of the life-threatening hike that triggered his own mystical experience, biologist John Wathey takes the reader on a scientific journey to find the sources of religious feeling and the illusion of God's presence. His book delves into the biological origins of this compelling feeling, attributing it to innate neural circuitry that evolved to promote the mother-child bond. Dr. Wathey argues that evolution has programmed the infant brain to expect the presence of a loving being who responds to the child's needs. As the infant grows into adulthood, this innate feeling is eventually transferred to the realm of religion, where it is reactivated through the symbols, imagery, and rituals of worship. The author interprets our various conceptions of God in biological terms as illusory supernormal stimuli that fill an emotional and cognitive vacuum left over from infancy. These insights shed new light on some of the most vexing puzzles of religion, like the popular belief in a god who is judgmental and punishing, yet also unconditionally loving; the extraordinary tenacity of faith; the greater religiosity of women relative to men; religious obsessions with sex; the mysterious compulsion to pray; the seemingly irrepressible feminine attributes of God, even in traditionally patriarchal religions; and the strange allure of cults. Finally, Dr. Wathey considers the hypothesis that religion evolved to foster reproductive success, arguing that, in an age of potentially ruinous overpopulation, magical thinking has become a luxury we can no longer afford, one that distracts us from urgent threats to our planet.Deeply researched yet elegantly written in a jargon-free and accessible style, this book presents a compelling interpretation of the evolutionary origins of spirituality and religion.

Stay, Illusion

Stay, Illusion
Author: Lucie Brock-Broido
Publisher: Knopf
Total Pages: 113
Release: 2015-03-03
Genre: Poetry
ISBN: 0307962032

National Book Award Finalist Stay, Illusion, the much-anticipated volume of poems by Lucie Brock-Broido, illuminates the broken but beautiful world she inhabits. Her poems are lit with magic and stark with truth: whether they speak from the imagined dwelling of her “Abandonarium,” or from habitats where animals are farmed and harmed “humanely,” or even from the surreal confines of death row, they find a voice like no other—dazzling, intimate, startling, heartbreaking. Eddying between the theater of the lavish and the enigmatic, between the gaudy and the unadorned, Brock-Broido’s verse scours America for material to render unflinchingly the here and now. Grandeur devolves into a comic irony: “We have come to terms with our Self / Like a marmoset getting out of her Great Ape suit.” She dares the unexplained: “The wings were left ajar / At the altar where I’ve knelt all night, trembling, leaning, rough / As sugar raw, and sweet.” Each poem is a rebellious chain of words: “Be good, they said, and so too I was / Good until I was not.” Strange narratives, interior and exterior, make a world that is foreign and yet our own; like Dickinson, Brock-Broido constructs a spider-sibling, commanding the “silk spool of the recluse as she confects her eventual mythomania.” And why create the web? Because: “If it is written down, you can’t rescind it.”

Worship as Praise and Empowerment

Worship as Praise and Empowerment
Author: David R. Newman
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Total Pages: 169
Release: 2009-12-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 160899130X

Worship as praise of an all-powerful deity has traditionally been associated with the passive side of life. If worship as praise is indeed passive, it could be that such worship has the effect on people of taking power away. Worship as praise would be at best irrelevant and at worst a hindrance in an age that is, as perhaps never before, preoccupied with the active exercise of power. The central issue of this book is the question, Can worship be both praise and empowerment? By examining Christian worship in these terms, the author seeks to make a strong affirmation of the importance of worship for the movements of liberation that are seeking to exercise power responsibly in our time. In this respect Worship as Praise and Empowerment can be described as a major work of liberation theology in the North American setting. Why worship? What are some of the contemporary obstacles to worship? What really transpires in the act of worship? These are just some of the important questions addressed in this insightful book of liturgical theology.

The Akshaya Patra; Manasa Bhajare: Worship in the Mind

The Akshaya Patra; Manasa Bhajare: Worship in the Mind
Author: Signet IL Y’ Viavia: Daniel
Publisher: Xlibris Corporation
Total Pages: 687
Release: 2016-03-16
Genre: Philosophy
ISBN: 151446912X

The Akshaya Patra series is written as a book to augment books of philosophical inquiry; and to assist true inquiry in such a way, so as to inspire the Mysteries that unfold on the path of initiation. Let us begin by breaking bread together, by this first step, that we may destroy the tome of ignorance with that first principle in prayer saying; "A house that is loved is always satisfied." This house is the Temple of Self; inspired by life and the touch of nature, the Akshaya Patra throughout is filled with inner depth and determination. These first works of the Akshaya Patra, were inspired by, and dedicated to, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, whose influence was, and still is, too vast for words; and whose love has satisfied the genius in this Tomb and Tome of Time. This first book of Volume ONE begins, with the features of introductory, for taking the earliest footsteps, on the path of sacred life; dedicated to Self-Transformation. As a Tree of Knowledge is planted, its roots fan out thru many traditions, and its branches stretch to provide shelter and protection over all. Its leaves call for all to come and take their share of comfort beneath the shadows in its shade; delighted and lighted by the sun by day, and with night fascinated to discover the ringlets of the moon and stars that gave first light in the residence of space. We are THAT Time, we are that Space; we are that Consciousness. "Tat Twam Asi" ... the pursuant in pursuant search, in the sea, of supreme reality. Self-Mastery is a personal journey and there is only one friend; and that is the sacred messenger, who comes to life as the resident within. There are many years involved in coming to this writing of the Akshaya Patra Series. The examinations here have taken us to this first place in the writing; that is nothing more than the satisfaction of ethical journey, working forward from the true beginning. There are many more volumes and books to follow for us, in order to reach our destination in this vast work of self-transformation. Are we ready? Are we deserving? We have been fooled by fools maybe, and we are, or are we, the fools to dream that we are more than this fool we have come to be. We come to this knowing that we have not come to terms with our true identity. Maybe we have fed ourselves unwisely, and only broken bread that is dry, tasteless, and come unsatisfied, from drink before a shallow empty well. The Akshaya Patra Volume ONE Book ONE; entitled Manasa Bhajare: Worship in the Mind; means to satisfy. The Mind will be the first portal passed; before transitioning thru its own death and resurrection. It is here in this first book of Volume ONE that we are first entertained; breaking down our traditions that take shape into something immaterial but tangible. In all, Volume ONE alone will consist of nine books. More to be published. This is Book ONE. Seven Volumes are written and every day these are maturing waiting for release. Currently there are hiding behind this Volume ONE Book ONE about 17 books written... It is to unfold the culmination of a lifetime of work. Each Volume evolves thru seven stages of Initiation; as if passing thru seven days labor on the path towards liberation. In this it is like the Bhagavata. Our purpose, objective and ends may be summed up in the advice given in these words of Sai Baba: (True knowledge) instructs you to reform yourself first. After transforming yourself, try to reform others. That is the advice offered by Vidya (True Knowledge). The delusive attachment to the objective world can be uprooted by means of selfless service rendered as worship to the Lord. Genuine devotion is characterized by LOVE FOR ALL, at all times, everywhere. Sai Baba

Political Visions & Illusions

Political Visions & Illusions
Author: David T. Koyzis
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 339
Release: 2019-05-07
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 083087206X

In this freshly updated, comprehensive study, political scientist David Koyzis surveys the key political ideologies of our era, unpacking the worldview issues inherent to each and pointing out essential strengths and weaknesses. Writing with broad international perspective, Koyzis is a sensible guide for Christians working in the public square, culture watchers, and all students of modern political thought.

Defending Illusions

Defending Illusions
Author: Allan K. Fitzsimmons
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 358
Release: 1999
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9780847694228

Fitzsimmons "examines the science, philosophy, and law of ecosystems management and shows how efforts to make federal protection of ecosystems the centerpiece of national environmental policy are driven by religious veneration of Mother Earth wrapped in a veil of weak science."

Citizenship Without Illusions

Citizenship Without Illusions
Author: David T. Koyzis
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
Total Pages: 178
Release: 2024-11-26
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 1514008637

In this practical guide on political engagement and citizenship, David Koyzis present a case for political engagement as a way to love our neighbors without full devotion to parties or ideologies. Using examples from various eras and places, he explores topics like how to vote, citizenship under less-than-ideal circumstances, and more.