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The Sacred Universe: Earth, Spirituality, and Religion in the Twenty-first Century

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Ordained or not, no purveyor of religion today should teach without having had an extensive course using this book as one of its texts. It is too important to be relegated to those relatively few who are self-starting, spiritual seekers or environmentalists. This book deserves being used as a companion to the sacred scriptures of each and every religion. Thomas Berry has gotten to the heart of the reform of consciousness without which nothing else can adequately address our ecological crisis. His passing this year at the age of 90 is a sore loss, but this book along with other of his writings will continue to enlighten and bless us.

Do you wonder about what the future holds for the earth and humans? This book is based on sound science and goes beyond science to give meaning to evolution, the connectedness of all that is and the place of the human on the earth. From where does the consciousness of humans come? where is evolving consciousness leading us? Explore what the extraordinarly perceptive mind of Thomas Berry presents in relation to these questions. Another work by this author is [[ASIN:0609804995 The Great Work: Our Way into the Future

The Sacred Universe: Earth, Spirituality, and Religion in the Twenty-First Century is edited by Mary Evelyn Tucker and comes from one of the 20th century's scholarly thinkers on spiritual intersection between humans and the natural world. Berry was a leading scholar and Catholic priest who spent over fifty years writing about earth and spirituality: THE SACRED UNIVERSE's essays represent his best writings and are recommended for spirituality collections.

Thomas Berry's timely work came into my possession as the oil disaster spread its killing stain throughout the entire Gulf of Mexico. Commentators seem concerned as to how we shall clean up the shores. The real question is "How far can the pollution travel if the well is unable to be stopped?" Is it possible that the pollution could spread to the entire earth? Would that not be the first act of the end of life on earth as we know it? If this can occur when ONE well fails, what would happen if they were all made to fail?

"The Sacred Universe" presents the mystery and miracle of Cosmic evolution, starting from a point of no dimensions, a creation "ex nihilo", through revelation through scriptures of all religions, and the personal experience of meditation wherein the wonders are received, used and praised. The icon which focuses our attention on this reality, is the photo of the earth and moon taken by the Galileo Probe. The blue/white marble of the earth contrasts to the barren brown of the moon as the only place in the Cosmos on which we know it to be the absolute perfect balance of conditions to allow the evolution of intelligent life to appreciate the wonder of it all and to help prevent the destruction of this paradise through technological possibility. Try to imagine that marble as all black.

The Sacred Universe is a cosmic "Silent Spring", that calls upon spiritualities and religions to embrace the whole cosmic evolution as the Divine Word Itself.

This collection of Berry's essays spans about three decades, and captures the evolution of his thought. We watch a grand vision struggling for expression. The first efforts are wordy, dense, and filled with theological language. Berry is struggling to bring his whole religious heritage with him into the new ecological age. With each attempt his writing grows clearer in focus. He argues less against outdated sentiments, and stresses the glories of life to be saved. Finally, he becomes a grand old prophet, regaling us with admiration for the sacred cosmos.

--author of The Gardens of Their Dreams: Desertification and Culture in World History

This book deals with difficult subjects in very clear and concise terms, but the reader has to stay alert to digest the themes and concepts. This is `heavy' paper.