God In All Worlds: An Anthology of Contemporary Spiritual Writing [Paperback]

Lucinda Vardey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1996

Spanning fifty years and representing traditions from Christianity, Judaism, and Hinduism to Gaia worship and New Age beliefs, this bountiful anthology forms an inclusive map of the spiritual journey and its landmarks. Its twenty-two chapters describe prayer and meditation, the power of myth, the Mother goddess and the Cosmic Christ, the struggle with evil, the gifts of love and grace, and the awe-filled encounter with a divine Other that is intensely personal yet has the capacity to transform the world. God in All Worlds includes the work of some of the great religious thinkers of our century--Krishnamurti, Paul Tillich, Martin Buber, the Dalai Lama, and Mother Teresa. But among its more than one-hundred contributors are also poets (Allen Ginsberg, Maya Angelou), novelists (Flannery O'Connor), activists (Mahatma Gandhi, Vaclav Havel), psychologists (Carl Jung, Abraham Maslow), feminists (Germaine Greer, Robin Morgan), naturalists (Barry Lopez), and physicists (Albert Einstein, Fritjof Capra). The result is a book of dazzling breadth and insight that will inspire, console, enlighten, and renew readers for years to come.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Vardey (Belonging: A Book for the Questioning Catholic Today) has gathered a diverse and highly philosophical collection of modern (since 1945) writings representative of all spiritual traditions. Her goal is to "contribute to the understanding of the revelation of the spirit in our time." More than 100 contributors, including Hans Kung, Thomas Merton, Aldous Huxley, J. Krishnamurti, Pierre Tielhard de Chardin, Martin Buber, Vaclav Havel and Mother Theresa, chart the spiritual journey of the soul. The editor provides very brief introductions to 21 chapters devoted to such subjects as the quest, revelation, trials, surrender, death and eternal life. This erudite anthology with its relevant material on mysticism, New Age consciousness, ecology, goddess worship and cosmological speculation is sure to become a treasured resource for both small-group and formal study.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Fashioned after a journey of the soul toward enlightenment, these readings provide guideposts along the path to spiritual awakening. A wide range of contributors?theologians Rosemary Radford Ruether and Martin Buber; poet/writers Erica Jong and Allen Ginsberg; and scientists Fritjof Capra and Stanislav Grof?representing a diversity of religious traditions?Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Wicca?examine the rich variety of the spiritual quest. The brief selections included, all taken from writings of the past 50 years, are gems of living religious experience whose facets sparkle with the light of spiritual illumination. Highly recommended.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 896 pages
• Publisher: Vintage (October 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0679745432
• ISBN-13: 978-0679745433
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.2 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #61,533 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you are a sceptic, please, read this book !, September 8, 2000

By 

B.Friendly "Bee" - See all my reviews

This review is from: God In All Worlds: An Anthology of Contemporary Spiritual Writing (Paperback)

I considered myself an agnostic sometimes atheist, but was not happy with that choice, so I went on a "trip" to find out who or what God is. "God in all worlds" totally blew my mind with its insightfulness. Some of the essays are quite difficult to grasp but this is a book you have to read over and over again anyway, so its spiritual content can really sink in. I could only read this book with lots of breaks in between, it's so profound. The editor made an excellent choice in compiling the different chapters, and using authors from ALL religions makes reading about God especially valuable. I agree with the previous reader: if the house burns down, I'll grab this book first. And I no longer consider myself an agnostic or atheist, but rather a believer.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant! So much God in one book!, April 4, 2002

By 

Tim Burness (Brighton, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: God In All Worlds: An Anthology of Contemporary Spiritual Writing (Paperback)

A very large and absolutely fantastic collection of contemporary spiritual writing put together by Lucinda Vardey. If you are interested in modern interpretations of God from EVERY religious and spiritual point of view, this is a great, BIG, introduction to a huge number of authors. Apart from anything else, you could save yourself a huge amount of time and money by buying this book!

Lucinda Vardey has divided the writings into 6 sections: The Quest, Revelation, Trials, Surrender, Death And The Etrernal Life, Awe, and sub-divided each of these sections into another 3 or 4 sections. I was already familiar with a handful of the huge number of masterful contributors, such as the "non-guru" Krishnamurti, physicist and Eastern mystic Fritjof Capra, rebel priest Matthew Fox, Zen writer Alan Watts, Christian and Narnia legend C. S. Lewis. But after intitial introductions through reading pieces in God In All Worlds, I went on to purchase or borrow books by holocaust survivor Viktor E. Frankl, Gary Zukav and Ken Wilber.

Several years after being bought this book, I am still occasionally dipping into it and discovering some new perspective on who or what God may be. Thank you Lucinda.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If the house is burning, I won't leave without this book !, November 20, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: GOD IN ALL WORLDS: An Anthology of Contemporary Spiritual Writing (Hardcover)

Dare I say that a collection of spiritual writing has been created which rivals if not surpasses the life long value of the Bible (don't strike me down). The depth and richness of the content of this book rivals any other book I've read thus far. I won't lend it out for fear of missing it. Buy the hardcover... you'll be glad you spent the extra money for increased durability.