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Rachel Kohn's book, the new believers, is a light and tasty race through several streams that lead into our current spiritual milieu. Published in 2003, it hasn't had time to become too dusty yet! It still seems to reflect the "new". The official website is here.

I enjoyed reading it. Perhaps it was too easy to read, but in its weight-class it's a fine book. I found it helped contextualise several strands of belief and also orientate me on the general outlook of several big names that I have only recently come in contact with. It also provided interesting perspectives on outlooks I am familiar with; I sometimes perceived some inconsistency between Kohn's representation and my understanding of a topic. I think this was the book's only weakness: occasionally over-simplifying for the sake of space or coherency. Belief systems contain a confusing amount of subtle differences, so we can't hold it against Kohn; she does very well with her subject material.

I described The New Believers as a race...perhaps cross-country is the best metaphor as the chapter list demonstrates:

Re-inventing the self: The Lessons of Oz
Re-writing the bible: Jesus was a Man
Returning to the mother: God was a Woman
Restoring the earth: The Earth is a Bible
Reforming Buddhism: The Buddha is Western
Renewing Judaism: Jubus and Kabbalah
Re-souling psychology: The Soul is Clinical
Removing morality: Morality is Dead
Reclaiming moral sense: The Chimps Have It
Redeeming religion from itself: Cults Don't Think
Rethinking rigid & romantic religion: Where We Are Now

There were a couple of good quotes (and I enjoy a good quote) but the author's main intention seemed to be exploring the mainstream religions and the reactions against them, thereby pointing to popular spiritualities.

Although the outlook isn't necessarily Christian, popular spirituality has (almost) always influenced Church praxis, if not doctrine. I can't praise it as highly as Spong (see official website) but it's certainly worth reading to gain an understanding of our neighbours (in the metaphorical sense, of course) and the direction of glocal religious life.

This quote caught my attention and although it isn't indicative of the book's thrust, I leave it for your consideration:

"Spirituality is like the orgasm of love; it is bestowed with grace and is only experienced if one is fully attuned to the divine. Religion, on the other hand, is the humdrum relationship that ensues when the bloom of love is past -- it is full of expectations and mutual obligation. But can one really have one without the other? And is this dissection into parts truly representative of the whole?" (Kohn, 154)

Kohn, Rachael. The New Believers: Re-Imagining God. Sydney: Harper Collins Publishers, 2003.

1 Comments:

 Craig (mars-hill), at 3/11/05  

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