Love wins : a book about heaven, hell, and the fate of every person who ever lived

 by Rob Bell. Outspoken pastor and best-selling author Bell dares to question conventional Christian wisdom, such as the popular belief that states a select number of Christians will spend eternity in heaven while the rest of humanitynon-Christians and those who have not been savedwill suffer pain and punishment in hell. How does a person end up being one of the few? Chance? Luck? Random selection? he wonders. By asking these and other similarly pointed questions, Bell raises issues some may find disturbing or, at the very least, unsettling, not only about religion but about what it means to be a believer. He contends that some images of Jesus and God should be rejected outrightimages contrary to what he considers authentic Christian behavior. Through the use of anecdotes and Bible stories, Bell suggests alternative ways of understanding heaven and hell as well as such deeply Christian concepts as salvation and repentance. Further, he maintains that the cruel rather than loving God so many Christians believe in is a distortion of the Christian spirit. Thought-provoking. --Booklist (Check catalog)

The path : creating your mission statement for work and for life

 by Laurie Beth Jones. Laurie Beth Jones's first business bestseller, Jesus, CEO, made her the writer of choice for the large group of readers interested in bringing a spiritual dimension into their lives and business practices. In The Path, she again -- to great success -- combines powerful spiritual inspirations with sound, practical advice for helping individuals and the enterprises they lead to achieve their highest purposes and potentials. The Path is a complete guide to finding and fulfilling one's mission in life and business through the formulation of a succinct and focused plan. --Publisher (Check Catalog)

The experience of samādhi : an in-depth exploration of Buddhist meditation

 by Richard Shankman. Shankman (Sati Center for Buddhist Studies), one of the leading meditation teachers in the English-speaking world, provides an in-depth analysis of Buddhist meditation, especially drawing from the traditions rooted in the P~li Canon and the Visuddhimagga, an important treatise in Therav~da. This work does not address the meditation traditions found in the Mah~y~na or Vajray~na traditions. The primary intended audience is those who have a meditation practice or are interested in developing one. This is not an academic analysis of the topic, but rather an important primary source. Two related concepts thread through this work, namely sam~dhi (right concentration) and the stages of jh~na (profound meditative states of stillness that are the attainments of concentration and that lead to Enlightenment). Shankman provides excellent summaries of the related content in the major texts of the P~li Suttas and the Visuddhimagga, and also summarizes the controversies concerning sam~dhi and jh~na. The clarity of these discussions alone is enough to make the book a useful purchase. The other significant contribution that this work makes to the field is a collection of interviews with influential, English-speaking Buddhist meditation instructors; the content of the interviews focuses on samdhi. --Choice (Check Catalog)

Redeeming the Enlightenment : Christianity and the liberal virtues

 by Bruce K. Ward. This rich, nuanced book by Ward (Laurentian Univ., Ontario, Canada) draws on his previous work on Russian novelist Dostoyevsky, combining that literary analysis with probing explorations of philosophers such as Kant, Rousseau, Nietzsche, and Taylor. Ward argues that liberal modernity's ethics and philosophy are distorted reflections of richer Christian notions of the self and ethical existence. In contrast to the growing proliferation of specialized studies, this book offers an expansive tour looking for connections and differences among a host of thinkers--not to argue for a wholesale rejection of the Enlightenment but to show that Christian humanism is a richer philosophy upon which to base human fulfillment. In that project, humanity finds fulfillment in the giving of the self in love, not an endless quest for self-authored authenticity. This volume finds a way into a beyond-current debate about religion's role in a liberal society to show how religion and theology can point the way to a deeper meaning of the liberal project. Philosophically and theologically sophisticated, the book delineates the rich ways in which philosophy and theology can powerfully engage literature. --Choice  (Check Catalog)

The hemlock cup : Socrates, Athens, and the search for the good life

  by Bettany Hughes. There are certain historical figures whose lives merit perpetual reexamination because their impact continues to reverberate century after century. According to historian Hughes, author of Helen of Troy: Goddess, Princess, Whore (2005), Socrates is one of these seminal social and cultural architects. Beginning at the end of Socrates' long life, she reaches back in time, analyzing the historical context responsible, in part, for spawning such an exceedingly influential thinker. If, as she purports, we think the way we do because Socrates thought the way he did, it is important for us to understand why and how he posited the relentless questions about what it means to be human that drew attention to his famous philosophical method of inquiry and debate. This, then, is not only a lively and eminently readable biography of Socrates the man but also a vivid evocation of Athens, the city-state on the cusp of originating many of the greatest precepts of modern Western civilization. --Booklist (Check catalog)

The truth (and untruth) of language : Heidegger, Ricoeur, and Derrida on disclosure and displacement

 by Gerrit Jan Van Der Heiden. This book investigates the relationship between language and truth/untruth through analysis of contemporary hermeneutic theory in the thought of Heidegger, Ricoeur, and Derrida. Van der Heiden (Radboud Univ. Nijmegen, the Netherlands) suggests that much of the history of philosophy attempts to eliminate ambiguity by reducing language to a universal and transparent system. Hermeneutics, on the other hand, stresses the importance of metaphor, poetics, and translation. The author focuses on points of agreement between hermeneutic and deconstructive theories to argue for the roles of disclosure and displacement in the function of language. Disclosure is the relationship between language and being and truth as most clearly seen in Heidegger; displacement involves linguistic phenomena such as metaphor, translation, and mimesis that displace "a word or a group of words from one (con)text to another." Chapter 1 sets the stage through a discussion of Heidegger's notions of truth, untruth, understanding, and language. The following three chapters address the themes of writing, metaphor, and mimesis and their relationship to disclosure and displacement. The final chapter provides a more direct investigation of these two thematic terms. Summing Up: Recommended. --Choice (Check catalog)

The truth about grief : the myth of its five stages and the new science of loss

 by Ruth Davis Konigsberg. Veteran journalist Konigsberg offers a spot-on critique of Elisabeth K bler-Ross's seminal theory-the five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. This "staged" approach, Konigsberg argues convincingly, is unscientific, tends to assume more prolonged mourning, and "completely omits positive emotions that are also integral to the experience of grief." Konigsberg also looks at various scientific studies on how people cope with grief, noting, "On average, those who got help experienced no less distress nor recovered more quickly than those who didn't." She maintains that people cope with grief thanks largely to the human capacity for resilience, relying heavily on the work of psychologist George Bonanno, though Konigsberg acknowledges that this isn't the case for those who experience the intractable grief that Freud called "melancholia." Konigsberg makes few distinctions among different mourning situations and among various therapeutic approaches (e.g., individual versus group treatment; long- versus short-term counseling; cognitive-behavioral versus psychodynamic treatment). In general, she has researched her subject, writes clearly and engagingly, and uncovers a host of interesting facts. Despite a few conceptual flaws, this book is well worth reading. --Publishers Weekly (Check Catalog)

The death of the animal : a dialogue

 by Apola Cavalieri. This small book is full of large issues: philosophical reflection on the moral status of animals, the ethics-metaphysics relationship, the is/ought distinction, the relationship between analytic and Continental philosophy, the role of reason and argument in ethics, and more. Not that the book provides complete analyses of all these important issues; rather, it aptly raises the other issues while discussing the status of animals, demonstrating thereby the intricate relationships among them. Cavalieri (editor, Etica & Animali) begins with a Platonic-type dialogue that argues cogently that one's concept of "the animal" relies on perfectionism, the unjustifiable view that entities possessing certain desirable traits are morally superior to entities without those traits. In a series of short essays that follow, several other prominent thinkers join Cavalieri for a provocative discussion of "the animal" and the many other questions that swirl around that issue. They include analytic and Continental philosophers (Harlan Miller and Matthew Calarco, respectively), the novelist John M. Coetzee, and the literary thinker Cary Wolfe. Readers will find much to agree and disagree with throughout. This stimulating, unique book could have many uses in academic contexts. Summing Up: Recommended.  --Choice (Check Catalog)

Real happiness : learn the power of meditation : a 28-day program

 by Sharon Salzberg. In an inviting, easy-to-follow format, Salzberg (Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness), cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society, provides a 28-day program for incorporating meditation into one's life. Written for beginners, the book explains breathing and sitting techniques, the science behind the practice, and 12 guided meditations. Interspersed throughout are FAQs from Salzberg's students regarding their difficulties with the practice. The accompanying CD includes nine meditations to guide readers through breathing, walking, emotional, and loving-kindness exercises. This is one of the best guides for anyone interested in exploring meditation or mindfulness. --Library Journal (Check Catalog)

100 years of pragmatism : William James's revolutionary philosophy

 by John J. Stuhr. This collection of essays uses the recent centenary of William James's Pragmatism (1907) as the occasion for a series of reflections on the continued relevance of James's elaboration of pragmatism. The essays range from considerations of the historical and cultural significance of James's work in the context of American culture in the 100 years since its publication (James T. Kloppenberg, "James's Pragmatism and American Culture, 1907-2007" and Mark Bauerlein, "The Enemies of Pragmatism") to assessments of James's philosophical significance in the context of the broader history of philosophy (Richard M. Gale's "The Deconstruction of Traditional Philosophy in William James's Pragmatism" and Ross Posnock's "The Earth Must Resume Its Rights: A Jamesian Genealogy of Immaturity") to essays considering more systematic concerns in epistemology, political philosophy, and ethics. The final two essays consider possible futures for James's version of pragmatism. Overall, this volume consists of well-written essays that ought to prompt a thoughtful reconsideration of William James's thought and its place in American culture. --Choice (Check Catalog)