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Gay Spirituality
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by Toby Johnson
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by Bruce Anderson
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Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com Review
In this challenging and unusual book, Toby Johnson argues that while popular religion is supposed to be "the conveyor of wisdom," it relies on old myths that fail to address the most pressing issues of modern life (among them, the destruction of our environment, biotechnology, and racial equality). Gay men, he claims, by virtue of their position outside the mainstream, have developed ways of seeing that can help us develop a more evolved spirituality. Johnson's chief inspiration is Joseph Campbell, whose illuminations on myth and comparative religion have become wildly popular in the last two decades. But Johnson lacks much of Campbell's subtlety, and has a tendency to rely too much on Jungian thought. He argues against a dualistic world-view, for example, while reproducing some amazingly simplified views about women. And where are lesbians in Johnson's vision? All the enlightened knowledge bearers he anticipates are gay men (and childless ones, by the way). Despite these lapses, Gay Spirituality offers a lively romp through much New Age thought and, in Johnson's descriptions of biblical misreadings and cultural ignorance, a priceless survey of stupidity. Whether gay men can bring about a change in human consciousness is unclear--it is even less clear that, as Johnson breezily announces, "there is a goodness and virtue that runs through gay men's lives"--but his book should inspire serious thinking among spiritually minded gay men, and can serve as a useful antidote to Larry Kramer's Faggots. --Regina Marler --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
We postmoderns are developing a whole new approach to religion, argues former Catholic monk Johnson, thinking of it as mythic and metaphorical, not literal and legalistic. He contends that this is due in large part to the infusion of a gay sensibility into contemporary religious life. Gay people, writes Johnson, are in a good position to rescue the "life-enhancing, mystical-consciousness-inspiring, all-loving spiritual core of the religious instinct" from evil, oppressive churches because many gays "feel the loving, religious sentiments deeply," but "do not fit into the Church." Some parts of gay spirituality (like a positive sex ethic) are new, says Johnson, and some of gay spirituality consists of putting a gay spin on many traditionally religious themes. That Johnson apparently believes metaphor is a new ingredient in religious life is just one of this book's many flaws: scholars from Karen Armstrong to Janet Martin Soskice have shown conclusively that thinking metaphorically is actually a very old way of doing religion, trumped by empiricism and literalism only since the Enlightenment. A second flaw is Johnson's caricature of Christianity. He assumes, for example, that the handful of Christians who believe AIDS to be God's punishment for homosexuals represents all of Christendom. But perhaps most disturbing is Johnson's assumption that he speaks for all gay people. Some homosexuals and lesbians may be inspired by the vague spirituality Johnson sketches, but most gay members of established faith traditions will find little here that is of use.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews
In this challenging and unusual book, Toby Johnson argues that while popular religion is supposed to be "the conveyor of wisdom," it relies on old myths that fail to address the most pressing issues of modern life (among them, the destruction of our environment, biotechnology, and racial equality). Gay men, he claims, by virtue of their position outside the mainstream, have developed ways of seeing that can help us develop a more evolved spirituality. Johnson's chief inspiration is Joseph Campbell, whose illuminations on myth and comparative religion have become wildly popular in the last two decades. But Johnson lacks much of Campbell's subtlety, and has a tendency to rely too much on Jungian thought. He argues against a dualistic world-view, for example, while reproducing some amazingly simplified views about women. And where are lesbians in Johnson's vision? All the enlightened knowledge bearers he anticipates are gay men (and childless ones, by the way). Despite these lapses, Gay Spirituality offers a lively romp through much New Age thought and, in Johnson's descriptions of biblical misreadings and cultural ignorance, a priceless survey of stupidity. Whether gay men can bring about a change in human consciousness is unclear--it is even less clear that, as Johnson breezily announces, "there is a goodness and virtue that runs through gay men's lives"--but his book should inspire serious thinking among spiritually minded gay men, and can serve as a useful antidote to Larry Kramer's Faggots. --Regina Marler --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Publishers Weekly
We postmoderns are developing a whole new approach to religion, argues former Catholic monk Johnson, thinking of it as mythic and metaphorical, not literal and legalistic. He contends that this is due in large part to the infusion of a gay sensibility into contemporary religious life. Gay people, writes Johnson, are in a good position to rescue the "life-enhancing, mystical-consciousness-inspiring, all-loving spiritual core of the religious instinct" from evil, oppressive churches because many gays "feel the loving, religious sentiments deeply," but "do not fit into the Church." Some parts of gay spirituality (like a positive sex ethic) are new, says Johnson, and some of gay spirituality consists of putting a gay spin on many traditionally religious themes. That Johnson apparently believes metaphor is a new ingredient in religious life is just one of this book's many flaws: scholars from Karen Armstrong to Janet Martin Soskice have shown conclusively that thinking metaphorically is actually a very old way of doing religion, trumped by empiricism and literalism only since the Enlightenment. A second flaw is Johnson's caricature of Christianity. He assumes, for example, that the handful of Christians who believe AIDS to be God's punishment for homosexuals represents all of Christendom. But perhaps most disturbing is Johnson's assumption that he speaks for all gay people. Some homosexuals and lesbians may be inspired by the vague spirituality Johnson sketches, but most gay members of established faith traditions will find little here that is of use.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
See all Editorial Reviews
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
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karmic resonances, gay spirituality, planetary mind Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Clear Light, Native American, Golden Rule, Absolute Truth, Joseph Campbell, The Advocate Experience, Resurrection of Jesus, World Saviors, Old Testament, Middle Ages, American Indian, John Boswell, Tibetan Buddhism, Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Great Mother, Body Electric, Saint Paul, The Pharisees, Sexual Revolution, New Age, Adaptive Virtues, Gay Consciousness Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
karmic resonances, gay spirituality, planetary mind Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Clear Light, Native American, Golden Rule, Absolute Truth, Joseph Campbell, The Advocate Experience, Resurrection of Jesus, World Saviors, Old Testament, Middle Ages, American Indian, John Boswell, Tibetan Buddhism, Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Great Mother, Body Electric, Saint Paul, The Pharisees, Sexual Revolution, New Age, Adaptive Virtues, Gay Consciousness Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?
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47% buy the item featured on this page: Gay Spirituality $18.00 |
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17% buy Gay Spirit Warrior: An Empowerment Workbook for Men Who Love Men $12.44 |
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13% buy Tantra for Gay Men $13.67 |
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12% buy Two Flutes Playing: A Spiritual Journeybook for Gay Men (White Crane Spirituality) $13.50 |
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